The director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Richard Cordray, resigned Friday and named Leandra English, the agency's chief of staff, as his successor. But the White House had other ideas, and soon announced budget director Mick Mulvaney will serve as acting director of the CFPB until a permanent successor is confirmed by the Senate.
It is unclear who is in the right here, as the CFPB is just six years old and has never undergone a directorial transition before. The Dodd-Frank Act, which created the regulatory agency, stipulates that the director is succeeded by the deputy director, the position to which Cordray promoted English on his way out. However, it is possible that the Federal Vacancies Reform Act overrides the Dodd-Frank law in giving the administration appointment authority.
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