Confusion Dominates as Trump and Cordray Each Appoint Interim CFPB Directors
On the day after Thanksgiving when most Americans were out shopping for the holidays, outgoing Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Richard Cordray quietly appointed his Chief of Staff, Leandra English, as acting director of the agency. That same afternoon, President Trump appointed current Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney to fill the same acting director role at the CFPB, a move many anticipated since Cordray announced that he would step down by the end of November. As everyone returns to their offices on Monday, the CFPB has two named acting directors and a partisan war has ignited over the future of the agency.
Top Democrats in Congress immediately decried Trump’s move to install an ally in Mulvaney as interim CFPB director. The creator of the CFPB, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D- MA), argued that “[Trump] can nominate the next @CFPB Director – but until that nominee is confirmed by the Senate, Leandra English is the Acting Director under the Dodd-Frank Act.” Maxine Waters (D- CA), the ranking Democratic member on the House Financial Services Committee, added that Mulvaney was “an unacceptable candidate to lead the Consumer Bureau.”
Barney Frank, former Congressman and architect of the legislation that established the CFPB, noted the importance that the agency remain independent. Part of that independence precluded the President from choosing an interim director. Senator Richard Durbin (D- IL) reiterated the comments by Warren and Frank and claimed the President was violating the law by attempting to choose an acting director.
Across the aisle, top Republicans heralded Trump’s move. Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R- TX) congratulated Trump for his swift action in naming Mulvaney as acting director, adding, “with the resignation of Richard Cordray, there is now a wonderful opportunity to completely reform what has been a rogue agency that often harmed the very consumers it was charged with helping.”
Less than 24 hours after Trump announced Mulvaney in his new role, English filed a lawsuit to block Mulvaney from taking over the Bureau. The Department of Justice then issued a memorandum arguing President Trump had clear authority to appoint an interim director for the CFPB.
On Monday morning, Mulvaney arrived at CFPB headquarters and began reviewing agency materials. With a looming court battle and dissention in Congress, it is hard to know if he will still work in that role in the coming weeks.
