The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is moving quickly, targeting the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) in its push to identify and curb wasteful spending.
Early in his previous administration, President Donald Trump targeted the CFPB but faced opposition from both Democrats and Republicans. Now, with DOGE at his side to audit the bureau’s spending habits, it seems that his efforts to defang the agency may be successful. This is sparking fear not only among Dems, but consumer advocacy groups as well.
The look into CFPB began over the weekend following Office of Management and Budget (OMB) director Russell Vought being appointed as acting director of the bureau on Friday. He is taking over for Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who allegedly ordered staff to pause any work on rulemaking and litigation, as well as enforcement actions.
“Pursuant to the Consumer Financial Protection Act, I have notified the Federal Reserve that CFPB will not be taking its next draw of unappropriated funding because it is not ‘reasonably necessary’ to carry out its duties,” Vought wrote in an X post. “The Bureau’s current balance of $711.6 million is in fact excessive in the current fiscal environment. This spigot, long contributing to CFPB’s unaccountability, is now being turned off.”
Pursuant to the Consumer Financial Protection Act, I have notified the Federal Reserve that CFPB will not be taking its next draw of unappropriated funding because it is not “reasonably necessary” to carry out its duties. The Bureau’s current balance of $711.6 million is in fact…
— Russ Vought (@russvought) February 9, 2025
In a follow-up post, he called the bureau a “woke and weaponized agency.”
The CFPB has been a woke & weaponized agency against disfavored industries and individuals for a long time. This must end. https://t.co/ODcRNKwuBG
— Russ Vought (@russvought) February 9, 2025
“I think everyone assumes this is the USAID playbook, and I think everyone’s operating off of the assumption that we’re about to get annihilated, the way that they were annihilated,” a CFPB employee revealed in a conversation with The Hill.
The treatment CFPB is receiving is similar to what was done with USAID, where staffers are being prevented from entering workspaces as DOGE undergoes the monumental task of sifting through information.
Graham Steele, former assistant secretary of financial institutions at the Treasury Department under former President Joe Biden, believes this to be an “escalation” of Trump’s previous attempts to attack the bureau.
“There is precedent for certain action, for certain ways in which they took CFPB off the beat during the first Trump administration,” he said. “The idea of trying to basically shut the agency down in all but name is a step farther. It’s an escalation.”
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Sierra Marlee is a millennial whose hunger for the truth in a world of fake news has led her to write. Marlee also contributes to BizPac Review.
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