[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 188 (Thursday, December 8, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8421-S8422]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           CORDRAY NOMINATION

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, shortly the Senate will vote on the 
confirmation of Richard Cordray to lead the Consumer Financial 
Protection Bureau. Again, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. I 
stress ``consumer.'' By now we all know my Republican colleagues will 
filibuster Mr. Cordray's nomination. They said they will. This is not 
an up-or-down vote. In the Republicans' effort to not allow this vote, 
they are stopping a vote on this very qualified man.
  They are not blocking this nomination because of any fault, real or 
perceived, in this candidate. He has bipartisan support and is 
eminently qualified. He has a long history of protecting consumers 
against the unfair practice of financial predators. He currently serves 
as chief of enforcement at the Bureau.
  Before that, Mr. Cordray served as Ohio's attorney general, a very 
important job in a very heavily populated State. While there, he 
recovered billions of dollars from pension funds on behalf of retirees, 
investors, and others. He took action against fraudulent foreclosures 
and predatory lending. He is qualified, and he is a man of diligence.
  The Republicans are blocking his nomination and not allowing a vote 
because they don't like the Federal agency he would lead, an agency 
established by law. This is the first time in the Senate's history that 
a party has blocked a qualified candidate solely because they disagreed 
with the existence of an agency that has been created by law.
  Republicans are doing this to undermine the system of law we have in 
our country. Democrats fought to pass Wall Street reform last year to 
protect against the greed of big banks. Well, without a director, the 
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau doesn't have the tools it needs to 
get the job done. It is shocking that despite the economic crash in our 
rearview mirror--it is easy to look back and see what happened because 
of Wall Street greed--Republicans, in spite of that, would leave 
consumers without a watchdog to guard against the greed of Wall Street. 
That is unfortunate.
  Would the Chair announce the business of the day.

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