I'm guessing that most people have never heard of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau CFPB > Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. I would like to be optimistic, but I've been around too long to know that's probably wishful thinking. The Daily Show with Jon Stewart expresses a pessimistic view in some recent musical theater: Dodd-Frank Update - The Daily Show with Jon Stewart - 07/28/11 - Video Clip | Comedy Central It has the best advocate you could possibly hope for, Elizabeth Warren. If anyone has the right heart for that job, it's her. However, the bureau is still director-less after a year. She was interviewed by Jon Stewart a while back where she recounts some of the challenges. She knew she was in for an uphill climb from the beginning and is even more certain of the difficult road ahead. In other words, it's not looking good... Exclusive - Elizabeth Warren Extended Interview Pt. 1 - The Daily Show with Jon Stewart - 04/26/11 - Video Clip | Comedy Central Exclusive - Elizabeth Warren Extended Interview Pt. 2 - The Daily Show with Jon Stewart - 04/26/11 - Video Clip | Comedy Central Exclusive - Elizabeth Warren Extended Interview Pt. 3 - The Daily Show with Jon Stewart - 04/26/11 - Video Clip | Comedy Central But, Washington, D.C. is a big machine and she's just one gear. There is a lot of money to be made (by the banks) if it doesn't work and a lot of changes (which means risk to the banks) if it does. So, I expect to see it continue the way it has been going: All pretty on paper, but under-funded and unsupported (if not actively opposed) by congress. My outlook: The political machine that is Washington, D.C. will just continue to grind it down into irrelevancy. The 2012 elections will influence its survival: either by starting to help it out or accelerating its demise.
And Elizabeth Warren is already out and back in the classroom at Harvard effective 8/1. I agree with you- I think it's going to continue to get watered down more and more, especially now that Mrs. Warren is out of the picture.
Yeah, that doesn't bode well for the bureau. Looks like us consumers will have to continue to fend for ourselves. At least we now have the Internet and sites like this one!
Things may not be going great right now for the CFPB... But I have some hope still. Look at all the legislation that has come out of Washington over the past several years that is aimed at helping consumers (the CARD act, for example). It may be an uphill battle, but at least the Fed is doing SOMETHING, eh?
I still have hope too, but I don't think the CFPB is ever going to be close to what Elizabeth Warren wanted it to be. I think she eventually realized that too, so now she's off to the races to become a Senator.
