CFPB’s Chief Targeted On TV Ads

In a move aimed at the head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Director Richard Cordray is now the target of a dedicated television advertising campaign that alleges he is gunning to run for office as Ohio’s governor, with an eye on bringing legislation about that would benefit trial lawyers.

American Banker reported that the ads “appear to be the work of Lincoln Strategy Group,” which is billed as a Phoenix, AZ-based political strategy group linked to voter fraud and, as American Banker noted, has been sending operatives to trail Cordray. The ads make mention of the much-covered news that the CFPB has sought to limit arbitration clauses, which — extending to all sorts of financial instruments offered by banks and other entities — have been viewed as a boon to plaintiff attorneys.

Cordray’s term ends in 2018, and the director has never publicly stated that he intends to run for governor. American Banker noted that some of the higher-ups at the Lincoln Strategy outfit have been linked to Republican stalwarts and former campaigns, such as Mitt Romney’s.

American Banker noted that some of the Lincoln executives have been showing up at CFPB events and asking Cordray politically tinged questions. Other organizations, such as Protect America’s Consumers, have also been targeting the CFPB through ad campaigns. The other ads that have run have said that the CFPB headquarters has, post-remodeling, cost more than a Las Vegas casino; others state that there have been discrimination complaints brought against the agency from female and minority staffers.