Lawmakers Elizabeth Warren and Maxine Waters join rally after Trump administration suspends all CFPB operations<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chants of \u201clet us work!\u201d rang out across the courtyard of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) blocks away from the White House on Monday, as hundreds of angry protesters rallied against the Trump administration\u2019s decision to suspend all operations at the US\u2019s top financial watchdog \u2013 an agency that has clawed back more than $21bn from Wall Street for defrauded consumers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The demonstration came after Russell Vought<\/a>, Trump\u2019s newly installed acting director of the agency, ordered all CFPB staff to stand down and stay away from the office<\/a> in what critics are calling a brazen attempt to defang financial industry oversight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis is like a bank robber trying to fire the cops and turn off the alarm just before he strolls into the lobby,\u201d Senator Elizabeth Warren told the crowd. \u201cWe are here to fight back.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The shutdown order has thrown the agency into chaos<\/a>, with employees reporting confusion over basic questions such as whether they can check their work email or complete routine training. The agency\u2019s staff union filed a lawsuit<\/a> challenging the legality of Vought\u2019s stop-work order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Those critics also point to the influence of tech billionaire Elon Musk, who reportedly placed<\/a> several members of his Doge team inside the agency with access to its computer systems. Warren accused Musk of orchestrating the shutdown to benefit his planned financial services platform, X Money, part of X\u2019s eventual evolution to be an app for everything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe financial cops, the CFPB, are there to make sure that Elon\u2019s new project can\u2019t scam you or steal your sensitive personal data,\u201d Warren said. \u201cSo Elon\u2019s solution, get rid of the cops, kill the CFPB.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The CFPB was created after the 2008 financial crisis to protect consumers from predatory financial practices. It\u2019s since taken action against major banks including JP Morgan, Wells Fargo and Bank of America for violations of consumer protection laws.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A shutdown would then threaten oversight of everything from credit card late fees to paycheck advance schemes. Without the CFPB\u2019s supervision, companies could potentially charge excessive overdraft fees, while debt collectors and payday lenders would face seriously reduced oversight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The agency\u2019s enforcement actions have secured billions in consumer relief, including a $120m settlement<\/a> with student loan servicer Navient announced last September over illegal loan servicing practices, and a $175m penalty<\/a> against Block\u2019s Cash App in January for inadequate fraud protection. In one of its largest actions, the CFPB ordered Wells Fargo<\/a> to pay $3.7bn in December 2022 for widespread mismanagement of auto loans, mortgages and deposit accounts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But in November, Musk posted that they should \u201cdelete<\/a>\u201d the CFPB for being too duplicative of other regulatory bodies, and on Friday posted<\/a>: \u201cThey did above zero good things, but still need to go.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe have worked too hard. We have fought too hard for this democracy, and we ain\u2019t turning it over to Elon Musk<\/a>,\u201d Representative Maxine Waters said to the crowd. \u201cWe\u2019re going to win.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Senator Chris Van Hollen called the situation \u201cthe most corrupt bargain in American history\u201d, referring to Musk\u2019s $288m investment<\/a> in Trump\u2019s campaign. \u201cElon Musk spent over $280m to elect Donald Trump, and Donald Trump has given Elon Musk the keys to the United States government,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Christine Chen Zinner, senior policy counsel for consumer financial justice at Americans for Financial Reform, was also at the rally, and warned that shutting the CFPB would eliminate crucial consumer protections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDirector Vought ordering all the CFPB staff to stop their work essentially is giving financial companies a green light to defraud and gouge their customers,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The move comes despite broad public support for the agency. A September poll from Americans for Financial Reform<\/a> showed that 91% of voters believe it is important to regulate financial services to ensure they are fair for consumers, including 95% of Democrats, 87% of Republicans and 88% of independents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is a really popular agency,\u201d Chen Zinner said. \u201cSo to do anything to hamper this work would be a risky political move, because right now, the CFPB is held with the same high regard as programs like Social Security and Medicare.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n