Washington D.C. – A who’s who of controversial right-wing extremists are lining up to file amicus briefs in favor of a lawsuit before the Supreme Court brought by the predatory payday loan industry that seeks to gut the popular Consumer Financial Protection Bureau by striking down its independent funding structure. The latest one comes from Mick Mulvaney, former Trump OMB Director turned CFPB Acting Director turned Chief of Staff, who spent his entire tenure at the CFPB trying to gut the agency from within at the behest of Republican financial industry mega-donors – a brief that was filed by former Trump CFPB official Eric Blankenstein best known for writing racist internet posts including a diatribe on how “the great majority of hate crimes were hoaxes.” When Blankenstein’s racist writings were exposed by the Washington Post during his time at the CFPB, Mick Mulvaney reportedly gave Blankenstein a proverbial “high five” and refused to fire him despite a staff revolt.

Financial industry stooge Mick Mulvaney and hate crime denier-Eric Blankenstein may be the least credible former Trump officials to weigh in on whether the CFPB should keep protecting consumers from industry abuse and discrimination,” said Jeremy Funk, spokesman for Accountable.US.

“If the idea is to make predatory lenders who filed this baseless lawsuit look good in comparison, these would be the right-wing trolls to do it. It says it all about the merits of this case that it’s being pushed by a coalition of predatory lenders, industry money chasers, an author of racist internet ravings, and a seminal architect of the insurrection. If the Supreme Court gives those with an ax to grind against the CFPB what they want, it will likely lead to the worst roll back of consumer protections in U.S. History,” Funk continued.

Here’s What You Need to Know About Mick Mulvaney’s Tenure As Acting Director of the Trump CFPB:

 

  • Fired 25 Consumer Experts Who Had Advised The Bureau And Closed The CFPB’s Student Loan Office. 
  • Requested $0 From The Federal Reserve To Fund The CFPB in 2018
  • First Steps At the CFPB Were To Cut Off The Bureau’s Access to Data and Funding
  • Weakened Efforts To Protect Servicemembers And Put The Bureau’s Anti-Discrimination Efforts In The Hands Eric Blankenstein, Who Was Exposed for Earlier Racist Writing Claiming Most Hate Crimes Are Hoaxes
  • Gave Blankenstein a Proverbial “High Five” Upon Learning of His Racist Writings
  • Dropped Investigations And Pulled Back On Strong Enforcement Action, Often To The Benefit Of His Campaign Donors
  • Mulvaney Repeatedly Reduced Penalties For Companies That Broke The Law
  • Teamed Up With Industry To Weaken Important Consumer Protection Rules

READ MORE FROM ACCOUNTABLE.US: Insurrection Architect & Former-Thomas Clerk John Eastman Lends Support to Predatory Lender Lawsuit Against CFPB

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