The fight for the future of the CFPB, explained

The Logoff is a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here. Welcome to The Logoff. Hope you had a good weekend. Today I’m focusing on the Trump administration’s efforts to erase a consumer watchdog agency, both because the agency has an important mission and because the fight for its future has ramifications for the broader struggle over President Donald Trump’s efforts to reshape the government. What’s going on? The administration is trying to dismantle the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the federal agency that polices financial services companies (including debt collectors, payday and mortgage lenders, credit reporting companies, and some banks) for customer abuse and fraud. Over the weekend, acting CPFB Director Russell Vought, a Trump appointee, told staff to stop working, essentially paralyzing the agency. By this morning, the agency’s headquarters was closed to almost all employees. Is that legal? Congress created the CFPB in 2010 as part of its response to the 2008 financial crisis, and it would take another act of Congress to abolish it. What’s next? The CFPB employees’ union sued Vought on Sunday, asking a federal judge to immediately freeze Vought’s order and to eventually overturn it. So far, no ruling has been issued. Why does this all sound familiar? The anti-CFPB moves closely mirror the administration’s attempt to shutter the US Agency for International Development — another dismantling that’s being contested in court. What’s the broader context? The Trump administration is asserting its right to do away with executive branch agencies whose goals it disagrees with, even if those agencies’ existence is protected by federal law. That’s a power grab that would take more authority away from Congress and hand it to Trump. Trump’s opponents are asking the courts to block these efforts. So far, judges have several times ordered the administration to stop while cases are considered, but final rulings have not yet come down. We’ll keep tracking them and keep you posted. And with that, it’s time to log off ... Difficult times are good times to bring people together, but planning a party can be a lot of stress. It doesn’t, however, have to be a lot of stress. Skeptical? I was too. But when my colleague’s 93-year-old grandmother spelled it out, it helped me see how to bring people together without making myself miserable.