Sen. Rob Portman
Sen. Rob Portman thinks he can solve the Richard Cordray confirmation problem with another gang, one intended to
curtail the power of the agency Republicans have been trying to kill since it was created by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform law.
A senior GOP aide said Tuesday that the Ohio Republican had talks with Cordray in recent weeks and had brought together some Democratic and Republican senators to seek common ground on changes within the CFPB that could address GOP concerns about the independent financial regulatory agency.
For example, the aide said, Portman suggested the idea of creating an inspector general within the CFPB.
Portman was one of only two Republican senators who did not
sign a letter to President Obama this winter, declaring that they would never let Cordray be appointed as long as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau could function as an independent organization that actually had power to protect consumers. Portman is likely overestimating his ability to be the broker between reason and crazy he thinks he can be in this situation. The vast majority of his caucus won't be mollified by anything less than a completely toothless CFPB, a bipartisan commission that Congress would have financial control over.
Portman also apparently believes that if they can just break the filibuster over this one nomination, he can prevent Harry Reid and the Democrats from using the so-called nuclear option—changing Senate rules with just a majority vote—to break the filibuster. He's forgetting that there are another two filibustered executive nominations, and at least three judicial nominations Republicans are threatening to block.
Gutting the CFPB—the only way Republicans will confirm Cordray—is not going to solve the larger problem of Republican obstruction. It's only going to gut the CFPB, the worst possible outcome of Portman's efforts. Any Democrats who are seriously working with him on this, and they are likely to be the same Democrats who are squeamish about rules reform, need to realize this.
Keep the pressure on. Use this link to send an email to your Democratic senators telling them to re-open filibuster reform and make the Senate function again.