Fight over consumer watchdog office heads to court | WORLD
Give Here It's our year-end giving drive! BOOST OUR MISSION WITH A GIFT
Logo
Sound journalism, grounded in facts and Biblical truth | Donate

Fight over consumer watchdog office heads to court


WASHINGTON—Mick Mulvaney showed up to work at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) on Monday despite legal questions about his right to be there. President Donald Trump selected Mulvaney, who currently heads the Office of Management and Budget, to step in at the CFPB until he appoints a new permanent director. But when former bureau head Richard Cordray abruptly left the office Friday, he appointed his own successor by promoting his former chief of staff, Leandra English. The dueling appointments ignited a legal dispute, with English suing the Trump administration over the weekend to block Mulvaney from taking over. English argues she is the rightful acting director until the Senate confirms a new one. Both English and Mulvaney showed up at the bureau’s Washington office Monday morning. President Barack Obama created the CFPB in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis as part the Dodd-Frank banking reforms. Obama appointed Cordray as the first CFPB director in 2011. Most Republicans dislike the bureau because it has virtually no congressional oversight. Mulvaney voted to dismantle the CFPB while he served in Congress.


Evan Wilt Evan is a World Journalism Institute graduate and a former WORLD reporter.


An actual newsletter worth subscribing to instead of just a collection of links. —Adam

Sign up to receive The Sift email newsletter each weekday morning for the latest headlines from WORLD’s breaking news team.
COMMENT BELOW

Please wait while we load the latest comments...

Comments

Brendan Bossard

According to the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010, 12 USC 5491, The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection has a Deputy Director who is appointed by the Director and serves as acting Director in the Director's absence.  The Director is appointed by the President, with Senate approval.  The President has no authority to fire the Deputy Director.  The President may fire the Director for "inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office," so Pres. Trump cannot fire English just because he prefers someone else to be in that role.  Corday may have found a loophole when he appointed English just before leaving.  Pres. Trump will need to work hard to win this one.  He may be better advised to retreat on the legal front, and pursue Senatorial approval of his appointment, because the letter of the law does not appear to be in his favor.