Leader Schumer Floor Remarks On Senate Democrats Forcing Votes On Legislation To Undo Trump Administration’s Undermining Of Key Consumer Protections

Washington, D.C. – Today, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) spoke on the Senate floor urging Senate Republicans to protect the American dream and support Democrats’ joint resolutions of disapproval against the Trump administration’s decision to reverse key consumer protections. Below are Senator Schumer’s remarks, which can also be viewed here:

Later today, the Senate will have a series of votes on the Trump administration’s undermining of key protections for the American people against predatory corporate practices that raise costs and limit opportunity.

The CFPB, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, has played a critical role on the side of people to help them avoid junk fees, predatory medical debt, and payday lenders who take advantage of people in need, including military servicemembers.

The Trump administration has chosen to prioritize undermining these critical protections and today, Senate Democrats stand up and say enough.

As someone who helped authorize the CFBP years ago, I feel strongly that we cannot let Trump undermine and constrain this vital agency. So I thank Senator Warren and so many of my Democratic colleagues for leading these Joint Resolutions of Disapproval to fight on behalf of the American people, of the American consumer.

The Joint Resolution of Disapproval that I am leading is against the Trump administration’s decision to reverse CFPB protections on mortgage lending called “contract for deed” transactions that without the proper guardrails can be predatory to people trying to live the American dream in purchasing a home.

For millions of Americans who can't access a traditional mortgage, a contract for deed can seem like a lifeline, but all too often, these arrangements are traps.

The buyer takes on every obligation of homeownership immediately — the taxes, the repairs, the risk — but doesn't receive the deed until they've paid every last dollar.

Miss a single payment, you can lose everything – no equity, no recourse, evicted like a tenant.

Over 200,000 New Yorkers are in these manipulative arrangements right now.

The CFPB had heard reports of many unfair, deceptive, and abusive practices in contract for deed transactions, and took action in 2024 to crack down on these practices by applying the same lending protections to these loans as other consumer and mortgage loans.

What does Trump want to do? Of course, he wants to give a green light to bad actors that they are free to exploit Americans potential homeowners in this way by eliminating this CFPB protection.

Apparently, Trump wasn’t paying attention during the 2008 financial crisis. Giving these predatory lenders free rein only hurts the American people and the American economy.

I call on all my colleagues – Democrats and Republicans alike – to join me in protecting Americans who just want a fair shot at the American dream.

###