“I’ve written to Mr. Mulvaney to inform him that while his time running the Consumer Bureau may be over, the time for accountability for his actions is about to begin.
This Congress, I am going to be working diligently to undo the damage that Mulvaney has wrought during his time at the Consumer Bureau,” Waters said.
She said she plans to reintroduce the Consumers First Act to reverse many of Mulvaney actions, Waters said. Among other things, the bill would reinstate aggressive oversight of consumer and payday lenders, who charge hefty hidden fees for services. Oversight was slashed under Mulvaney.
Waters also took the opportunity of her first policy speech to excoriate President Trump for the government shutdown. “We are now in the midst of the longest government shutdown in history - all because this President is throwing a tantrum about a senseless border wall.
“The Trump shutdown is harming hardworking Americans and our financial markets. The shutdown has all but closed the doors of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which is Wall Street’s cop on the block. As a result of the shutdown, the SEC is unable to carry out most enforcement actions against bad actors,” Waters added.
The longtime House member was cleared of ethics violations by the House Ethics Committee in 2012. The charges alleged Waters improperly advocated for bank bailout legislation and lobbied Treasury officials specifically for a minority-owned One United Bank, which received $12 million in federal bailout funding. Water’s husband had a significant investment in the bank, which he would have lost without the bailout.
Joining Waters will be freshman lawmaker Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), who identifies as a Social Democrat and is advocating for a new top 70% income tax rate for the wealthiest tax payers.