WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) – ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs – is demanding more information after news broke that Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Policy Director Eric Blankenstein was allowed to resign instead of being fired. Last September, the Washington Post uncovered a blog where Blankenstein posted bigoted writings on race, hate crimes and women. Brown repeatedly called for CFPB head Kathy Kraninger to fire Blankenstein who was charged with enforcing consumer protection laws, including laws in place to prevent lending discrimination (watch).
In testimony before the Committee in March, Kraninger refused Brown’s calls, saying CFPB was conducting an investigation. Brown intends to demand the results of that investigation and the terms of Blankenstein’s resignation.
“Eric Blankenstein should have been fired for his hateful, reprehensible and disgusting blog posts. Allowing him to resign is a serious moral and managerial failure that sends a signal to consumers that the CFPB will look the other way when it comes to discrimination,” said Brown. “Director Kraninger should hire someone with a track record of standing up for civil rights, and restore all authorities of the Office of Fair Lending and Equal Opportunity.”
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