Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) on Monday accused the Trump administration of reporting efforts to shut down the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) as “another fraud.”
“If you have a bank account, credit card, mortgage or student loan, this is code red,” Warren said in a video posted on social platform X. “I'm ringing the alarm bell.”
“The man who wrote Elon Musk and the Project 2025, [Office of Management and Budget Director] “Russ Vert is trying to kill the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau,” she continued.
“If they succeed, the Wall Street CEO can trick you, trap you, and fool you again.”
Warren, who helped establish the CFPB before joining Congress, criticized the series of measures imposed over the weekend, criticising the agency for being barely functional.
Trump appointed Vought to represent CFPB Director on Friday shortly after being confirmed as director of the Office of Business and Budget. He issued a halt work order on behalf of Treasury Secretary Scott Bescent during his brief duties, which he also took charge of the agency.
Vought ordered employees on Saturday to “stop all supervision and exam activities,” according to the Washington Post. That same day he announced that the CFPB would not take on the next funding from the Federal Reserve.
CFPB Chief Operating Officer Adam Martinez reportedly told employees that they would be closed until Friday on Sunday. On Monday, Vought ordered staff not to perform this week's work tasks, according to Business Insider.
According to Bloomberg, employees at Musk's Government Efficiency (DOGE) also have access to CFPB data.
“So why are these two guys trying to gut CFPB?” Warren asked Monday. “It's not rocket science. Trump has campaigned to help people who work, but now that he's in charge, this is in return for the rich people who invested in his campaign and fooled his family. is.
“After the 2008 financial crash and the big bank bailout, Congress created the CFPB to protect people from protecting fraud,” she added. “For years, Republicans tried again in Congress to repeal it, and they failed every time. Congress built the CFPB, but no one other than Congress – not the president. It's not musk, it's not Vought, it can't be closed down.”
Since its creation, Republicans have opposed the CFPB and have sued agencies on multiple occasions to declare it unconstitutional. It has survived so far, and the Supreme Court rejected yet another challenge to the CFPB's funding structure last May.
