While Elon Musk may not be the official President of the United States he plans to act in an imperial way. He has a history of making bold proclamations - which may not be based in fact -- as well as bold actions -- which later turn out to be not that wise. Exactly what are his plans when he is in charge of the new Department of Government Efficiency?
It turns out he's going to focus on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Musk states the agency creates too much red tape for businesses. What he is not stating is that the CFPB has placed cash in voters' pockets.
The Hill explores the issue in the opinion piece Elon Musk wants to 'delete' many Americans financial lifeline.
Since its founding, the agency has returned more than $19 billion in cash to people who have been scammed by financial institutions, including predatory payday lenders and even some of the largest banks in the country. It has done so under Republican and Democratic presidents, including major actions against Wells Fargo and Equifax during President Trump’s first term in office, which, combined, returned $425 million to consumers. (Those actions both began under the Obama administration, but Trump’s CFPB directors oversaw the execution of those fines.)
The CFPB enjoys bipartisan support. Why would an organization that protects Americans from fraudulent credit repair companies and loan scams be targeted?
Unsurprisingly, the people who run financial scams have powerful friends.
Musk’s post on X, for example, seems to have been prompted by complaints from Marc Andreessen, a venture capitalist whose companies have been sanctioned (and, in the case of LendUp Loans, shuttered) because of CFPB investigations and actions. Andreessen accused the agency of “terrorizing financial institutions,” and was clearly infuriated when the CFPB found that LendUp had misled customers about high-interest loans and overcharged U.S. service personnel.
How do you feel about Elon Musk potentially gutting the CFPB?
 |
| Buy me here! |
