WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Representatives Mark Pocan (WI-02) and Raúl M. Grijalva (AZ-03), Co-Chairs of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC), today called on Acting Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Mick Mulvaney, to fire Eric Blankenstein, a high level appointee at CFPB tasked with enforcing anti-discrimination laws, following the Washington Post’s recent report detailing Blankenstein’s history of racist and sexist writing.
In written comments on a political blog, Blankenstein argued the use of racial slurs does not constitute racism and he claimed that hate crime “hoaxes” are “three times as prevalent as actual hate crimes.” He also reportedly authored extremist comments stating that women “f--- someone [they] shouldn’t have” and use abortion to “get rid of the problem” but men can’t.
“The Trump Administration continues to appoint individuals to the highest posts in our government who show hostility toward racial minorities, women, and other marginalized groups. Everything points to this individual being the exact opposite of someone that can be counted on to enforce fair lending laws. Eric Blankenstein should be removed from this post immediately,” said Pocan and Grijalva. “Employees of the CFPB are now faced with a tense and threatening work environment. The toxic and hateful comments written by Eric Blakenstein would not be tolerated in American workplaces and certainly should not be acceptable when made by top government officials charged with protecting the interests of consumers.”
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