Senate Republicans Screw Over Millions Of Americans By Gutting Key Consumer Protection

Senate Republicans voted to kill a key rule that protected consumers by preventing them from being forced into secret arbitration after they were taken advantage of by big banks and financial institutions.

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The Senate vote was 50-50 with Vice President Mike Pence breaking the tie.

The Republicans that have criticized Trump or sunk his efforts on other issues in the past sided with the President as Jeff Flake, Bob Corker, John McCain & Lisa Murkowski all voted to harm consumers.

Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) told Republicans that they would be harming veterans by getting rid of the rule, “It’s common to hear stories throughout my state of Illinois – and throughout the military community – of Servicemembers being taken advantage of through predatory loans, scams, abuses and fraud. That’s because active-duty Servicemembers are particularly vulnerable consumers, especially when they are deployed. Corporations and scam-artists know this and they take advantage of it. The CFPB’s forced arbitration rule could help protect our Servicemembers from this sort of abuse, but it seems that a few of my colleagues want to make it harder for military families to get by. That’s a shame. A vote to overturn it is a vote against our military and against those who wake up every single day to serve and protect the greatest nation on the face of the earth.”

Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) pointed out how remarkable it is that the Republican response to the Equifax breach was to make it easier for big banks to harm consumers, “It’s remarkable that Senate Republicans’ response to the Equifax data breach and corrupt behavior at Wells Fargo is to strip consumers of their legal right to hold these and other bad actors accountable. Tonight’s vote was crystal clear: rather than standing with consumers to fight to protect their day in court, Senate Republicans chose to carry the water for bad actors like Wells Fargo and Equifax. The fine-print language Senate Republicans want to again permit financial institutions to use has been called the ‘ripoff clause’ for a reason: it gives them license to tilt the scales away from consumers, and escape responsibility for wrongdoing. Tonight’s vote isn’t in the best interest of everyday Americans. It’s in the best interest of big corporations.”

Republicans just screwed over hundreds of millions of Americans by forcing them into arbitration if they are taken advantage of by a big bank or predatory lender. Scam artists aren’t going to be held accountable for wrongdoing, which is fitting because the country is now being governed by a scammer in chief.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association