STATEMENT: Demos Commends President Obama’s Appointment of Richard Cordray to Lead the CFPB

NEW YORK, NY -- Demos applauds President Obama’s decision to use the Senate’s holiday recess to appoint Richard Cordray as Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The following is a statement released by Tamara Draut, Vice President of Policy & Programs at Demos. 

We can’t afford to let Wall Street keep taking us for a ride: Americans need a strong Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to bring fairness and accountability to the financial sector.

"In the wake of the financial crisis caused by decades of de-regulation, the American people lost $14 trillion in household wealth and over 8 million jobs. We can’t afford to let Wall Street keep taking us for a ride: Americans need a strong Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to bring fairness and accountability to the financial sector. Mr. Cordray’s appointment to lead the CFPB will enable the agency to continue moving forward with its critical mission. 

"For months, Mr. Cordray’s nomination  was stalled in the Senate for one reason: political brinkmanship. Not a single member of Congress has expressed any substantive reservation with Cordray himself, who enjoys the bi-partisan support of 37 state Attorneys General and a vast majority of the American people. Instead, politicians took the historically unprecedented step of holding up the nomination of agency director in an effort to weaken the agency itself. 

"With this appointment, President Obama took a stand against big banks and shady lenders. American families are one step closer to the level playing field they need."

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