“The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is a 21st century agency that implements and enforces Federal consumer financial law and ensures that markets for consumer financial products are fair, transparent, and competitive.”

CFPB website, “About” page

You know the old adage: “We’re from the government and we’re here to help you”? This seemingly innocuous phrase sends most folks fleeing for their lives—unless they take a moment to understand they are fleeing from themselves. We are the government. And if we don’t like how our representatives are handling the issues we care about, we have the power to throw the bums out and elect people more to our liking. If you could ever warm to one government agency, though, you might choose the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

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— First up for this evening’s readings is a sprawling New Yorker article that details the massive amount of research, study and just plain roll-up-your-sleeves work that Senator Elizabeth Warren accomplished to create the CFPB. It also sheds light on those who stick with an idea and who and what they care about, no matter the political fallout to them, and those who without the bat of an eye, shift their “strong beliefs” with the political winds. This is the fascinating “true story” of a soon-to-become Senator working to help all of us. It is long, but worth every second of the read. Don’t miss it!

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/05/04/the-virtual-candidate

— Here is an excellent breakdown by Forbes of exactly what the CFPB does and how it protects consumers like you and me.

https://www.forbes.com/advisor/personal-finance/the-cfpb-protecting-and-educating-financial-consumers/

Don't forget to check out the direct link to the CFPB complaint database, which allows you look up a financial institution you’re poised to do business with and see how many complaints consumers have filed against it.

— Next is a Zoom interview with the first director of the CFPB, Richard Cordray, as he explains the importance of consumer protection laws, particularly in the age of the Covid-19 pandemic.

https://www.facebook.com/U.S.PIRG/videos/3110006475697218

And finally for this evening, delight in watching this video of Senator Elizabeth Warren skewering Wells Fargo CEO, John Stumpf, at a Senate Banking Committee hearing. It is a beautiful sight.

I hope you now have a least a cursory review of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, how it came to be and how it helps you.

Have thoughts and/or questions? Please share them below — I’d love to hear from you!

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