By Blocking Bipartisan Nominee Cordray, Senate Minority Protects “the Well-Heeled Interests that Have Fleeced Americans”

Washington, D.C. – Wade Henderson, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement in response to the obstruction of Richard Cordray’s confirmation to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB):

“By blocking Cordray’s confirmation, the Senate minority has shown that it’s more interested in neutering consumer protections than in confirming a highly qualified nominee with broad bipartisan support from attorneys general, mayors, and businesses. These senators continue to protect the well-heeled interests that have fleeced Americans, rather than fulfilling their obligation to ensure the government operates efficiently and effectively to protect consumers.

This economy is not working for the tens of millions of American consumers stuck in the cycle of unemployment or underpaid work. Blocking Cordray gives license to the most predatory pay day lenders, private student loan providers, and debt collectors to continue to squeeze the most desperate among us.

We are profoundly troubled by the unprecedented threat by a minority of the Senate to filibuster the confirmation of any nominee unless the Dodd-Frank bill is gutted to drastically weaken the CFPB.  Even with this setback, the civil rights community is determined to see a strong advocate confirmed to head the CPFB so it can fulfill its essential mission.”

Wade Henderson is the president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 200 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works toward an America as good as its ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference and its 200-plus member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.