Oligarchs Begin Removing the Guardrails
Democracy may die right in front of us
Elon and the Oligarchs made no secret of their disdain for a key federal regulator that holds big banks, fintech bros, and other financial bad actors accountable for their Reverse Robinhood ways.
Now, they are one step closer to their dream.
Today, CFPB Director Rohit Chopra was fired by President Trump. The move will allow Trump to appoint his own director - one who may work to dismantle the agency. Alternatively, a new director could be a lackey for the payday loan industry, as was the case in Trump’s first term.
Inevitably, whatever Chief Oligarch Elon wants is what will happen over at CFPB - unless, of course, Congress makes some effort to stop it.
Consumer advocates are already (rightfully) raising alarm about today’s news:
Public Citizen:
“With Trump’s payback to his billionaire Wall Street supporters, the nation now loses the vital, energetic, compassionate, and intelligent services of a great American. One of the most effective consumer champions in government in American history, Rohit Chopra worked tirelessly to protect vulnerable citizens from financial predators. The CFPB under Chopra eliminated many junk fees, capped credit card late charges, reformed reporting of medical debt, sued giant corporations, and elevated the total relief to consumers beyond $21 billion.
“An administration that retreats from the many advances the agency made while under his leadership will betray working Americans.”
Accountable.US:
“Republicans in Congress who are cozy with their financial industry donors are eager to say good-bye to Director Chopra,” said Accountable.US Liz Zelnick. “But there’s no public support for taking away basic consumer protections and making it harder for regulators to go after bad actors. Director Chopra has led the CFPB in returning billions to Americans’ pockets while creating rules that protect us all from unfair and deceptive practices in mortgages, credit cards, and bank accounts. The President’s decision to fire Director Chopra is yet another indicator of where his loyalties lie.”
Rep. Maxine Waters:
“President Trump’s decision to fire CFPB Director Rohit Chopra marks the end of an era of strong consumer protection and the beginning of a plan to end this important agency. Since taking the helm of the CFPB in 2021, Director Chopra has worked tirelessly to ensure the agency fulfills its critical mission of protecting American families in the financial marketplace. In the face of repeated and coordinated attacks, Director Chopra’s fearless advocacy on behalf of working-class families has returned more than $6 billion to harmed consumers.”
National Association of Consumer Advocates:
“The CFPB under Chopra enforced consumer laws, holding lawbreaking banks, lenders, credit card companies, debt collectors, mortgage servicers, consumer reporting agencies, data brokers, and others accountable for misconduct that was unfair, deceptive, and fraudulent, and that siphoned off money from the pockets of vulnerable people. It issued safeguards, including to rein in overdraft fees and to guard against violations of consumers’ privacy and misuse of their personal financial data in digital transactions.”
National Consumer Law Center:
“I am deeply concerned about President Trump’s decision to fire CFPB Director Rohit Chopra, who had 20 months to go in his term and has done critical work to support ordinary people against powerful corporate interests,” said Richard Dubois, executive director of the National Consumer Law Center. “Under Director Chopra’s leadership, the CFPB has fought to reduce overdraft and credit card late fees, take medical debt off 15 million credit reports, stop fraud on big tech payment apps, and hold powerful Wall Street companies accountable when they violate the law. The CFPB supports struggling families no matter their political ideology, and its important work on behalf of everyday people must continue.”
Consumer Federation of America:
“Under Director Rohit Chopra, the CFPB prioritized our pocketbooks over corporate profits,” said Adam Rust, director of financial services for the Consumer Federation of America. “Since he began in his role in September 2021, the CFPB has fought against junk fees, repeat offenders, big tech evasions, and corporate deception. It has championed competition, transparency, accountability, and consumer financial health. The agency applied its enforcement authority to address substantially harmful and widely occurring practices at the largest financial institutions, and through the lens of its supervisory authority, connected the dots to reveal how risky financial products can cause financial peril for working people. He leaves behind an impressive record of rules and guidances that reflect an agency that fulfilled its mission to protect consumers.”
Americans for Financial Reform:
“With Chopra’s firing, the Big Banks and Big Tech are winning already, but the rest of us will lose as Trump does favors for industries with the most money,” said Christine Chen Zinner, senior policy counsel at the Americans for Financial Reform. “Chopra has tirelessly stood up against gouging, fraud, and abuse in the financial services industry that make it harder for ordinary people to make ends meet. This firing is a craven giveaway to companies that want to boost profits by ripping off working families.”
Sen. Elizabeth Warren:
Under Rohit Chopra’s leadership, the CFPB is holding Wall Street accountable for cheating hard-working families and preventing the de-banking of Americans across the country, including consumers locked out of the financial system due to overdraft fees, religious organizations, and conservatives. The agency has returned over $20 billion to consumers since its founding – protecting Americans from junk fees, medical debt, and predatory lending. President Trump campaigned on capping credit card interest rates at 10% and lowering costs for Americans. He needs a strong CFPB and a strong CFPB Director to do that. But if President Trump and Republicans decide to cower to Wall Street billionaires and destroy the agency, they will have a fight on their hands.
Thanks to AdvocateAndy for helping spread the word of the many supporters of Rohit Chopra and his stalwart leadership of the CFPB. The billionaires and oligarchs who paid for the election don't like (hate!) the CFPB much but the little Americans who voted "for change" will miss Rohit when nobody in the government fights for them!
I’m absolutely sick over this. Rohit was by far the best CFPB director in the history of the CFPB. The crazy thing is Rohit & Lina were both the unsung heroes of the last four years that the average person has never heard of and actually implemented a economic populist strategy that MAGA should have been cheering but only a few actually recognized what they were doing for the people. I’ve found across the political spectrum when I start talking about the things they have done the reaction is positive across the board.
Shame on the Biden administration for not shouting out the accomplishments of the CFPB & FTC. I would have voted for a monkey from the zoo if it promised to keep Lina Khan, Jonathan Kanter and Rohit Chopra.