February 9, 2026 | WASHINGTON, D.C. — One year after the Trump Administration took over the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and instructed staff to stop all work, members of Congress joined the CFPB Union and advocates to hold a press conference to defend the CFPB and call for the Trump Administration to put borrowers over billionaires. 

Watch the livestream here: https://youtube.com/live/JUnEBdoCh_E?feature=share

Speakers from the event:

  • Senator Elizabeth Warren (MA)
  • Senator Dick Durbin (IL)
  • Senator Chris Van Hollen (MD)
  • Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY)
  • Representative Ayanna Pressley (MA-07)
  • Representative Sean Casten (IL-06)
  • Mike Pierce, Executive Director, Protect Borrowers
  • Tom Feltner, Associate Director of Consumer Policy, Americans for Financial Reform
  • Adam Rust, Director of Financial Services, Consumer Federation of America
  • Cat Farman, President, CFPB Union NTEU 335 
  • Anne, rank and file member, CFPB Union NTEU 335
  • Jane Fox, UAW Local 2325
  • Santiago Sueiro, Senior Policy Analyst, UnidosUS
  • Diane Thompson, Deputy Director and Chief Advocacy Officer, NCLC
  • Rob Randhava, Senior Counsel, Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
  • Graciela Aponte-Diaz, Vice President of Community Engagement, Center for Responsible Lending

Since taking over the CFPB, the Trump Administration—led by Acting Director Russell Vought—has worked to elevate Wall Street and Silicon Valley priorities at the expense of everyday Americans. The Administration has halted many functions of the CFPB, including its law enforcement arm, which has allowed corporations to get away with billions of dollars in harm and left consumers vulnerable to financial misconduct. Its giveaways to corporate America, like allowing big banks to continue charging Americans huge credit card late fees and overdraft fees, have cost Americans at least $18 billion every year. 

The Trump Administration has spent a full year trying to dismantle the CFPB, an effort that has so far been halted by the courts. Following a successful appeal by the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU), the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals granted en banc review and will hear oral argument on February 24, 2026. 

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About Protect Borrowers

Protect Borrowers (formerly Student Borrower Protection Center) is a nonprofit organization led by a team of experts, lawyers, and advocates fighting to build an economy where debt doesn’t limit opportunity. We investigate financial abuses, take predatory companies to court, and push for policies to protect working people from debt traps. We aim to deliver immediate relief to families while building power, driving systemic change, and fighting for racial and economic justice.

Learn more at protectborrowers.org or follow us on social @BorrowerJustice.