Washington, DC—In response to news that the Trump Administration is laying off 1500 employees at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau—leaving only 200 employees remaining, and the most dramatic step yet in the administration’s effort to effectively dismantle the consumer watchdog—the American Economic Liberties Project released the following statement.

“The mass layoffs at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau represent a devastating blow to American consumers,” said Nidhi Hegde, Executive Director at the American Economic Liberties Project. “By gutting this essential watchdog agency, the administration has effectively removed the cop on the beat. Without the CFPB’s oversight, predatory financial companies will have free rein to engage in abusive practices. This systematic dismantling puts critical consumer protection at risk, threatens the stability of our financial markets, and abandons millions of Americans to face financial battles alone.”

“The CFPB has been instrumental in handling millions of consumer complaints and recovering over 21 billion in relief for everyday Americans. Eliminating this protection doesn’t just harm individuals—it creates the precise conditions that led to the 2008 financial crisis. When financial institutions operate without accountability, the entire system becomes vulnerable to the same reckless behavior that once devastated our economy.”

Learn more about Economic Liberties here.

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The American Economic Liberties Project works to ensure America’s system of commerce is structured to advance, rather than undermine, economic liberty, fair commerce, and a secure, inclusive democracy. Economic Liberties believes true economic liberty means entrepreneurs and businesses large and small succeed on the merits of their ideas and hard work; commerce empowers consumers, workers, farmers, and engineers instead of subjecting them to discrimination and abuse from financiers and monopolists; foreign trade arrangements support domestic security and democracy; and wealth is broadly distributed to support equitable political power.