Cordray's nomination was approved on a party-line vote by the Senate Banking Committee on Oct. 6, but the Senate has taken no further action on his nomination. Complicating matters further, a group of 44 Republicans has pledged to block any nomination, part of a broader opposition to the structure of the bureau, which was created as part of the Dodd-Frank financial reform legislation.
In a conference call with the media, Brian Deese, deputy director of the National Economic Council, said the endorsement of the National Association of Attorneys General was intended to put pressure on those GOP senators to explain their inaction.
"The American public and leaders from across the country are adding their voices... to increase the stakes, to answer the question of why they're not acting," Deese said. "The debate around the CFPB as an institution is one that we had through the course of reform. What it needs now is a permanent director in place."
Cordray has served as the bureau's director of enforcement in its early months, the letter notes, experience preceded by his two years as Ohio's attorney general. He has "earned a reputation as a strong advocate for the interests of consumers," the letter says.
Mark Shurtleff, Utah's Republican attorney general, told reporters that he and nine other GOP attorneys general had attached their names to the letter. Shurtleff said he would continue to have conversations with Utah's two GOP senators and encourage them to move forward with the nomination.
"We all understand the political nature of this. Not all of us agree with every aspect of Dodd-Frank or the CFPB and have some concerns," Shurtleff said. "If there is going to be a director, we can't think of anybody would be better to do that as far as collaboration with the states."
