I posted a diary a couple of days ago in regards to the WSJ pointing to a list of candidates as the CFPA head that will be created when the bill is signed.
Thus far, a couple of them have taken themselves out of contention and have backed Elizabeth Warren.
Democratic leaders in Congress say their top pick for the post is Elizabeth Warren, the high-profile Harvard law professor and an outspoken critic of what she sees as a too-cozy relationship between government and bankers.
Other potential candidates include Michael Barr, a Treasury assistant secretary and University of Michigan law professor with a longstanding interest in consumer finance; Democratic state attorneys general Martha Coakley of Massachusetts, Lisa Madigan of Illinois and Lori Swanson of Minnesota; Susan Wachter of the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, who served in the Clinton Department of Housing and Urban Development; and Nicolas Retsinas of Harvard's Joint Center for Housing studies, a former bank regulator and a low-income housing specialist.
Since this list came out a couple of candidates have backed out and have endorsed Elizabeth Warren and other officials have as well.
Coakley:
One likely pick would be Harvard law professor Elizabeth Warren, who proposed creating the bureau in the first place. Warren has declined to comment on whether she would accept the position.
“I think, frankly, that Elizabeth Warren would be a terrific head of that agency,” Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley said yesterday on Fox Business Network, when asked if she herself would be interested in the new post. “She’s thought a lot about the consumer protection piece.”
Madigan:
On Tuesday, she issued a statement saying that she appreciates being mentioned in light of her work fighting "predatory and often discriminatory mortgage lending."
But Madigan threw her support behind the perceived front-runner for consumer czar, Harvard Law Professor Elizabeth Warren.
"Not only was it [Warren's] idea to create the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, but she has long understood the need for such an agency to ensure that another financial crisis doesn't devastate the futures of millions of hardworking Americans," Madigan said.
Frank:
U.S. lawmakers haven't even taken a final vote on financial overhaul legislation and some lawmakers already have candidates in mind to fill newly created roles. Rep. Barney Frank (D., Mass.), a chief architect of the bill, said he still favors Harvard Law's Elizabeth Warren for the head of a new consumer financial protection bureau to be housed within the Fed, a choice unlikely to sit well with banks and other financial firms she has frequently targeted for criticism. Asked about the new regulator of national banks, Frank would only say it would be someone less deferential to the industry and "not be ... itching to preempt state laws."
and today, Bair:
Bair also said that Elizabeth Warren, the Harvard professor who has pushed the Obama administration and Congress for stronger rules to protect consumers, would be qualified to run a new consumer bureau designed to regulate financial products such as mortgages and credit cards.
“It’s not my call, but I think she certainly has all the qualifications and credentials for that job,” Bair said.
It seems pretty likely that based on the evidence thus far, Elizabeth Warren seems to be the frontrunning choice for the agency.