Obama picks Cordray to head consumer agency

A Jan. 2009 file photo of Richard Cordray, former Ohio Attorney General. / AP Photo/Kiichiro Sato

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama intends to nominate former Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray to the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that was a central feature of a law that overhauled banking regulations.

White House and administration sources say Mr. Obama plans to announce the nomination Monday at the White House.

In choosing Cordray, President Obama bypassed Elizabeth Warren, a favorite of consumer groups, who has been assembling the agency as a special adviser to the White House and to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner.

Cordray would have to be confirmed by the Senate. Warren, who is considered the architect of the consumer bureau, faced opposition in the Senate and would have had a difficult time wining confirmation.

Cordray now serves as director of enforcement for the agency.

[dzaffina]

Elizabeth warren is the right woman for the job. She was predicting the economic crash before it happened, by the deregulation of wall street. thats why the republicans will never let her have that job.

[rightbehind]

I find it hard to believe this president would have sold out the middle class and poor this bad. Elizabeth Warren was the only real choice to correct what's wrong with this country. I am so disappointed in this president.

[catmomtx]

And she would never had been confirmed. You might have seen how Republicans were treating her in recent hearings. They never would have confirmed her and they probably won't confirm this guy either.

[ihk888]

America is going down straight. Corrupt Wall Street manipulate both side of aisle with money.how many of you out there aware there is such thing as "deferred prosecution" by government. When banks do criminal work, they report to the US government and then when they promise they won't do it again, they are not prosecuted. If you don't believe me, read NY times article written by Morgenson on July 8. Wall Street was favoring to Democrats when Obama was elected and when Obama was trying to do band-aid correction, even this was not acceptable to the crooks, they poured money into Republican. Tea Party? Sure they are against tax but they did same thing taking money from Wall Street within months. What a joke.

[NinthSt78]

Our President has chosen some very good people who have made things better. A banking crisis was averted, peace is close at hand, and I think things are looking better, but it isn't all going to happen overnight.

[realtimecoffee]

Peace is close at hand? Where is the hell is your hand?

[NinthSt78]

My hands are in plain sight applauding Obama and others, Maxwell. The picture of time there looks better at a distance, and the results look better with time.

[rightbehind]

Will a real democrat run against obama!

[rightbehind]

Getting real tired of republican president obama.

[passeme]

I hope this agency has some teeth, because this is the first promising news to come out of the Obama administration in some time. Here is something that, potentially could help every American consumer, Republican, Democrat or whatever. Is such a consumer advocacy bureau an extension of "Big Government?" Maybe, but we should keep it and get rid of some other redundant agency, because it's badly, badly needed to undo some of the damage done by Dubya's open-the-candy-store indiscriminate deregulation that has had such disastrous results for consumers. I personally would be glad to pay a few more bucks in taxes to support it if, that is, it is actually responsive to consumers. I am so tired of getting fleeced every time I turn around by greedy, arrogant mega-corporation. Will having a consumer advocate at the Federal level do anything to help curb predatory, strong-arm business practices like unjustifiable fees, or my personal favorite, being forced to allow firms direct access to my private bank account by charging much higher prices unless I agree to make invasive auto-withdrawl payments (something GEICO has begun doing)? Potentially, yes, even if all it does is to actually enforce current anti-trust regulations to discourage firms from colluding so that consumers can tell companies that behave like GEICO to stuff it and go somewhere else. You can't do if every firm is allowed to collude and pull the same thing, and they will, if left unchecked. Ideally we could even see a return to the true competition that once existed in, for instance, the highly predatory cable television industry. Remember when your cable company could have its franchise removed after four years or so if it was too abusive? Federal anti-trust regulations are NOT anti-competitive as the corporate spin-doctors have brainwashed people into believing; just the opposite, they are a necessity to encourage free-market competition in a marketplace dominated by multi-national corporate monopolies and oligopolies that answer to no one. We have every right, even an obligation, to demand that the government we pay for set limits on the predatory practices of firms doing business in our country and stand up for consumers. The Feds standing up to the corporate agenda in favor of consumers? A fantasy, maybe, but a nice one.

[sjc_1]

Warren was good at structuring the group, but it is a better idea to nominate someone that can get confirmation. That is NOT "caving" to anything or anyone, it is practical and I like that.

[skeezix06]

Obama is weak. He hasn't stood up for anything since he got in office.

[GmaCath]

Once again Obama caves to the American Taliban Party's opposition to Warren. It really won't matter though, because Cordray's appointment will just be added to the ONE THOUSAND appointments the American Taliban Party has been holding up for the past 2 1/2 years! The press should be putting that out everyday how these appointments are all being held up like NEVER in history. It's a disgrace and very anti-American.

[catmomtx]

Right, so what difference does it make? I mean Republicans haven't done anything to help this President so far. This just saves Elizabeth Warren from going through any more games Republicans planned to put her through. I sure hope they remember the games they played on President Obama because they have set a new standard on how to treat Presidents, their families and anyone else who thought they could do something good for our country. I will bet you that they will forget all about what they have done to President Obama and will whine like stuck pigs if they are ever lucky enough to get back in charge of the government they think so little of.