The Republicans are at it again in their plans to overhaul many aspects American life. Their target this time? Title X of the Dodd-Frank Act, “which established the CFPB.” On Tuesday, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-Texas) introduced companion bills that would effectively “eliminate the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB),” a “controversial watchdog” organization that many Republicans have been targeting for some time now. Now since their party is in the White House and in control of the House and Senate, many are seeking to take advantage of the position of power to push their agendas through, including passing the two companion bills.
The Republicans are at it again in their plans to overhaul many aspects American life. Their target this time? Title X of the Dodd-Frank Act, “which established the CFPB.” On Tuesday, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-Texas) introduced companion bills that would effectively “eliminate the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB),” a “controversial watchdog” organization that many Republicans have been targeting for some time now. Now since their party is in the White House and in control of the House and Senate, many are seeking to take advantage of the position of power to push their agendas through, including passing the two companion bills.
If passed, how will the new bills work against the might of the CFPB? What kind of impact will they have? Well, according to a statement from Cruz, his bill will give “Congress the opportunity to free consumers and small businesses from the CFPB’s regulatory blockades and financial activism, which stunt economic growth.” He added, “while there’s much more to do to scale back the harmful regulatory impositions of Dodd-Frank, this legislation takes a critical step in the right direction.”
Ratcliff also commented, saying “President Trump has made it clear he’ll join us in our fight to dismantle Dodd-Frank.” He added, “I’m optimistic at our renewed chances of advancing this effort with a willing partner in the White House.” And it’s true, the president did indeed “pledge to deconstruct the law without providing details on how the White House would like to do so.”
But why do Republicans loathe the CFPB so much? Well, since the agency opened in 2011, Republicans have opposed it, claiming the bureau is “unaccountable and too powerful” and have never been fond of the fact that the bureau is “controlled by an independent director with regulatory and punitive power.” Because of that, Republicans have recently introduced a proposal to “replace the director with a bipartisan commission” and let “Congress control the CFPB budget, currently funded by the Federal Reserve.” Other proposals include letting the CFPB’s director keep his job while “eliminating much of the bureau’s punitive and regulatory powers.”
Democrats, on the other hand, like the CFPB, and don’t want to see it changed. In the bureau’s defense, they cite the “more than $11 billion in restitution the agency won for defrauded Americans, and high-profile enforcement and regulatory actions taken against Wells Fargo, payday lenders and other financial services providers.”
This isn’t the first time Republicans have attacked the CFPB, though. Over the years Republicans have been trying to either “eliminate or drastically reform the CFPB.” The bills put forth by Cruz and Ratcliffe, however, would go “further than current GOP proposals to reshape the bureau.”
Sources:
GOP Bill Would Eliminate Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
GOP Preparing Plan To Gut Consumer Finance Protection Bureau, Roll Back Wall Street Regulations
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