Warren: Consumer bureau 'in reality is much better than the dream ever was'

For proof that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is growing fast, one need look no further than the elevator lobby at the front of their office space in a nondescript building in downtown Washington.

That's where the new agency, days away from opening its doors on July 21, has taken to holding its all-hands-on-deck staff meetings. The office holds the majority of the agency's 400 hires, and they could no longer fit in the conference room.

The person heading those meetings is not the agency's director.

But Elizabeth Warren, the de facto head of the agency as a special adviser to the president, is not deterred by the absence. For her, seeing the CFPB, which she thought up years ago, come into its own is plenty satisfying.

"Seeing it in reality is much better than the dream ever was," she told The Hill in a phone interview.

On Sunday the White House announced that the president would nominate the agency's current head of enforcement, former Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray to lead the bureau. Cordray's selection will be announced at a White House event on Monday. 

Anyone following the CFPB for the last year knows that it has not only enjoyed public support in its efforts but also has had its share of detractors. Business groups strongly opposed its creation, and Republicans in both the House and Senate have opened up multiple fronts against the bureau, which they charge has outsized power and is subject to undersized oversight.

Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.), the outspoken Republican who has sparred with Warren on numerous occasions, took the agency to task again Thursday, when Warren appeared before the full House Oversight Committee. In his opening statement, he blasted the bureau's "meager oversight" and accused Warren of "evasive non-answers" in previous testimony.

"What are the costs incurred by American consumers by these regulations?" he asked. "Because there will be costs."

In the House, several bills have been introduced that would alter the CFPB's structure or limit its powers; the House is set to vote on three next week. In the Senate, minority Republicans are using the confirmation process for leverage, opposing any nominee to head the agency until several changes are made to its structure.

One change commonly touted is to replace that director position with a bipartisan commission or board, which Republicans contend would make for a more balanced, deliberate bureau.

But Warren is not convinced.

"The people who are proposing the five-person directorship are not those who supported the agency, let's not be fooled here," she said. "If this were really about how you could improve the agency, wouldn't you spend a little time letting the agency gets its feet under it?

"Most people test-drive the car before they decide to rip out the engine."

Warren believes she has the American people in her corner. As proof, she points to one of the first initiatives the CFPB has taken on: an attempt to combine and simplify two mortgage disclosure forms. In May, the agency posted two draft forms on its website, and asked the public to weigh in. Over 100,000 people visited the site, and over 14,000 people filled out forms providing feedback on what isn't exactly the most glamorous of topics.

"That's a mortgage form, that's not exactly voting for your favorite sports star," she said.

As the July 21 opening date approaches, Warren downplays it as one in a series of milestones, calling it "an important date to us, but it's one among many."

On that date, the CFPB will make its debut by issuing a report on remittances — when people send cash to family and friends abroad — and one on credit reporting. It will also go live with a response center where consumers can ask about credit cards, and its team of over 100 examiners will begin making sure banks comply with consumer protection laws.

With so much controversy surrounding the new agency, one would think the July 21 start date would have far-reaching ramifications. But Warren considers it part of a long process to whip into shape a consumer credit market she called "broken" in Thursday's testimony.

"Big change doesn't come in a single blow, it comes from consistent pushing over time," she said in the interview.

As for Warren, her exact future is unclear. While liberal and consumer groups have loudly yelled for President Obama to name her CFPB director, she has been conspicuously mum on both the chance to head the agency and attempts by Senate Democrats to recruit her to run against Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) in 2012.

Although the CFPB cannot realize its full power until a director in place, Warren is free to stay on and run the bureau as a special assistant until the Senate confirms — or the president recess appoints — an official head.

Updated July 17 at 1:00 p.m.

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