Always looking out for the little guy, those Republicans. As long as the little guy is a bankster. If that means gutting the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the agency that in just a few short years has provided nearly $12 billion in financial relief to about 27 million American consumers—money Wall Street and financial services companies have swindled out of us, then Republicans are on it.
WASHINGTON — The chairman of the House Financial Services Committee will move forward on legislation to neuter the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and its power to crack down on predatory business practices, according to a leaked memo that emerged on Thursday and infuriated Democratic defenders of the bureau.
The memo, drafted by the chairman, Representative Jeb Hensarling, a Republican from Texas and a longtime foe of the consumer agency, aligns House Republicans with President Trump in the latest attack on President Barack Obama’s legacy. The memo detailed plans to weaken the leadership of the agency, allowing the president to replace the bureau’s director at any time. Legislation in the works would limit the bureau’s enforcement authority, reduce its ability to make rules and repeal its consumer complaint system.
It would also greatly shrink the enforcement tools at the consumer watchdog’s disposal, blocking it from being able to go after businesses engaged in deceptive practices and restricting its oversight of big publicly traded companies that are already regulated by agencies such as the Securities and Exchange Commission.
As of now, there's a big block to that legislation getting through the Senate. The filibuster on legislation is still in place, and Democrats aren't going to be quick to let this happen. As Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) says, they're trying to turn what is an extremely effective watchdog for the people into a "toy poodle." And to make their new president a liar, he adds. "It took less than three weeks for House Republicans to show their hand on how they will renege on candidate Trump’s campaign promises to hold Wall Street accountable and help working Americans."
There's plenty of non-legislative damage that can be done, too. Popular Vote Loser Donald Trump is being pressured to oust the bureau’s director, Richard Cordray, before his term ends next year so that a Wall Street lackey could be installed. Because there's always room in Trump swamp for one more.
Source
http://feeds.dailykos.com/~r/dailykos/index/~3/ztDj3DAfU28/-House-Republicans-move-fast-to-gut-agency-that-has-saved-consumers-billions
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