Updated on November 28 at 5:34 p.m. ET
There are currently two people claiming to be in charge of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. It’s up to a judge to decide who’s correct—Leandra English, who was promoted by the agency’s outgoing director, or Mick Mulvaney, the Trump administration’s pick. On Tuesday afternoon U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly, who was appointed by Trump in September 2017, denied English’s request for an emergency temporary restraining order. Though English is likely to continue to pursue her lawsuit, the judge’s ruling means that for now, Mulvaney can continue to lead the agency.
And he’s ready to change some things. “Rumors that I’m going to set the place on fire, or blow it up, or lock the doors, are completely false,” Mulvaney, who is currently the director of the Office of Management and Budget, said in a press conference on Monday afternoon. “That being said,” he added, “anybody who thinks that a Trump administration CFPB would be the same as an Obama administration CFPB is simply naive. Elections have consequences.”
Those consequences took the form of some changes that are predictable from someone favored by an administration that doesn’t like regulations. On Monday, Mulvaney instituted a 30-day freeze on hiring, rulemaking, regulations, guidance, and payments from the civil penalties fund (which is used to compensate Americans who have been harmed by financial institutions). “Anything that’s in the pipeline stops,” he said, and it’s a move that isn’t unusual during a leadership change at a government agency.