KeyTakeaways:
- Warren calls out Musk and Trump for undermining consumer protection efforts.
- D.O.G.E. now has full control over sensitive CFPB financial data.
- CFPB’s operations have ceased, leaving consumers without oversight.
Senator Elizabeth Warren condemned Elon Musk and former President Donald Trump’s actions in shutting down the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). According to Warren, the CFPB’s recent elimination has left U.S. consumers exposed to financial exploitation, as control of major consumer protection activities has been taken away.
The controversy began when Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (D.O.G.E.) took over the CFPB’s operations last week. The takeover followed an order from Russell Vought, head of the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB), granting Musk’s team full access to CFPB records and IT systems.
Employees at the CFPB were informed to stop work as D.O.G.E. staff gained full administrative access to confidential consumer financial data. By Sunday, the CFPB’s operations had reached a complete standstill, with the agency’s official website being offline. This left the agency, which has been responsible for returning billions of dollars to consumers, without the power to regulate or protect individuals from financial abuse.
The timing of the CFPB’s shutdown coincided with Elon Musk’s growing involvement in the financial sector. Nine days before the takeover, Musk’s company, X, had agreed with Visa to facilitate peer-to-peer payments. The agreement would have placed Musk’s financial services under the CFPB’s oversight, but now, without the agency’s enforcement arm, that oversight has vanished.
Additionally, the memorandum of understanding between D.O.G.E. and the CFPB grants Musk’s team full control over sensitive financial data, raising concerns about the possible misuse of this information for business ventures. Warren has been outspoken about the dangers of this shutdown, emphasizing that the absence of the CFPB leaves consumers exposed to potential abuse from financial institutions.
D.O.G.E.’s actions are part of a broader Republican-led initiative to overhaul federal agencies, a strategy outlined in the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025. D.O.G.E. has previously dissolved other federal agencies, such as the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Despite no formal vote to abolish the CFPB, Warren warned that without its enforcement capabilities, financial institutions can now operate without accountability.
