Trump administration cutting nearly 90% of Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
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Court Halts Mass Layoffs at CFPB Amid Legal Battle
Above: Smartphone screen with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) logo. Image copyright: Thomas Fuller/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
The Spin
Republican narrative
The CFPB’s reduction in force is necessary to get a bloated agency back into shape. As it stands, the CFPB is too unwieldy to properly fulfill its remit and perform its duties. By reducing the workforce and shifting its focus, the Bureau’s operations will better reflect its primary objectives and priorities while saving American taxpayers' dollars in the long run.
Democratic narrative
This is yet another blatant attempt to illegally reduce the federal headcount by an administration that appears to regard the rule of law with utter contempt. Despite a court injunction prohibiting terminations unrelated to performance or conduct, the Trump administration and DOGE proceeded with the layoffs. Judge Jackson made the correct decision by putting these illegal layoffs to a halt.