Dear John,

Elon Musk has set his sights on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) – the only federal agency dedicated solely to protecting consumers from financial fraud and corporate abuse.

Musk recently tweeted “CFPB R.I.P.” because he and the worst of Wall Street are pressuring House Republicans to dismantle the agency. This isn’t just empty rhetoric – it’s a coordinated effort to gut the CFPB’s enforcement powers and cut off its funding. If they succeed, financial predators will have free rein to exploit us with zero accountability.

The consequences would be devastating:

• Banks could hike hidden or misleading junk fees for basic services

• Discrimination in lending could worsen

• Banks may target Black, Brown, and low-income communities for predatory loans

• Credit card fees may proliferate

• Debt collectors could harass consumers relentlessly, with no oversight

• Scammers and fraudsters could prey on vulnerable Americans

The CFPB has more than proven it is capable of holding Wall Street accountable. Since its creation, the CFPB has returned more than $17.5 billion to American consumers who were cheated by financial institutions.

This is why Trump, Musk, Wall Street, and their billionaire allies want to kill the CFPB. They don’t want rules, and they don’t want consequences. Since they can’t destroy the agency outright, they’re trying to starve it from the inside, cutting off enforcement and rolling back consumer protections.

Demand your House Representative protect the CFPB today! You can send a pre-written message, edit it, or write your own direct message from scratch.

The CFPB has a track record of fighting and winning against major corporations that have engaged in fraud and abuse, beyond what individual consumers can achieve. For example:

• Wells Fargo: Paid billions in fines for opening fake accounts in customers’ names

• Equifax: Paid $700 million for a massive data breach that exposed millions of Americans

• Bank of America: Returned over $250 million to consumers for illegal & duplicate fees

• Payday lenders: Prevented from offering predatory loans with usurious interest rates

• Mortgage fraud: Prohibited from engaging in misleading loan practices that led to the 2008 financial crisis

Congress must choose either to protect consumers, or side with Wall Street and Elon Musk. The Trump-Musk administration and their financial elite allies want a system where they win big, and everyone else loses. If Congress lets them gut the CFPB, ordinary Americans will be left defenseless against fraud, junk fees, and financial exploitation.

Send a direct message to your House representative demanding they defend the CFPB, not dismantle it. Demand they protect consumers and keep Elon Musk’s hands off this critical agency!

Thank you for standing up for protecting consumers against exploitation by major corporations.

Robert Reich
Inequality Media Civic Action