Warren presses Trump CFPB nominee on conflicts of interest, workforce cuts

Senate Warren presses Trump CFPB nominee on conflicts of interest, workforce cuts Comments: by Max Rego - 07/23/26 2:19 PM ET Comments: Link copied by Max Rego - 07/23/26 2:19 PM ET Comments: Link copied

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Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) on Thursday pressed President Trump’s nominee to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) regarding conflicts of interest and the Trump administration’s cuts to the agency.

During Brian Johnson’s nomination hearing in front of the Senate Banking Committee, ranking member Warren noted the consumer protection watchdog, under acting Director Russell Vought, dropped a lawsuit against Capital One last year after the company donated $1 million to Trump’s inaugural committee.

The initial CFPB lawsuit, which the agency filed during the final days of the Biden administration, alleged Capital One cheated consumers out of more than $2 billion in interest payments on their savings accounts.

“Will you commit to notifying Congress and the inspector general immediately if the White House contacts you about an enforcement action against a Trump family company or a big donor that cheated families?” Warren asked Johnson, referring to Michael Horowitz, the inspector general of the Federal Reserve.

Johnson replied that during his two-plus years at the CFPB during the first Trump administration, such a scenario “never happened.”

The Massachusetts Democrat followed up, “That’s not my question. My question is, if it does, will you notify Congress, and will you notify the inspector general?”

She continued, “Look, there’s obviously a problem here. I’m looking for a way to clean it up,” and repeated her question to Johnson. But the nominee disputed the premise of Warren’s question.

“I don’t care whether you like the premise. I have given you a set of facts that are not made up. It’s happening right now,” Warren remarked, pointing at the dais for emphasis.

“I want your commitment that if it happens on your watch, you’ll pick up the phone and call us,” the progressive lawmaker added, gesturing to her fellow senators on the panel. “Our job is oversight. That’s not so hard. Are you willing to do that?”

Johnson then said he was “not going to engage in a hypothetical,” but he could not finish his sentence before Warren cut him off.

“OK, so the answer is no. You will not try to hose out the corruption,” Warren said.

Since November 2024, Johnson has worked as Capital One’s vice president of U.S. card compliance, according to his LinkedIn. While Trump nominated him to serve as director of the CFPB last month, Johnson acknowledged to Warren he still works at the bank.

When the Massachusetts Democrat said Capital One is paying Johnson as he is testifying, the nominee said he was appearing before the panel in his “personal” capacity.

“OK,” Warren replied, chuckling. “But they’re paying you to get confirmed for this job. I understand they’re also letting you keep a bonus that you have earned when you leave.”

“You know, they must be really excited about getting you confirmed here,” the senator added.

Johnson signed an agreement earlier this month pledging to recuse himself from any matters involving Capital One for two years if he is confirmed, Banking Dive reported on Tuesday.

Multiple Democratic senators, including Warren, also questioned Johnson about the cuts Vought has proposed to the CFPB’s workforce during his 17-plus months in charge.

A federal appeals court last month blocked the Trump administration from immediately firing bureau employees, but a federal judge on July 10 paused the union lawsuit seeking to block the administration from shutting down the watchdog.

The ruling from U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson, an appointee of former President Obama, allows for Johnson to decide how to move forward regarding cuts if the Senate confirms him.

When Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen (Md.) asked Johnson whether he, like Vought, believes the administration should “eliminate” the CFPB, the nominee said that is not his “intention.”

“The CFPB is a creature of statute. Congress has assigned to it important law to implement and execute, and my intention is to execute the law,” Johnson said.

But when Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) asked Johnson near the end of the hearing whether Vought has done anything he disagrees with, the nominee said, “None come to mind at the moment.”