Elizabeth Warren

I believe that Congress should treat all of the banking regulators alike and not say that the one that tries to watch out for consumers is going to be put through the political process.

Of course we need to be responsible to the Congress. The Congress should look over our shoulder 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

I want to say it this way: Small businesses are struggling, I understand that.

No. Congressman, the statute is quite clear that we are not in the business of establishing usury laws.

Oh, Congressman, you hit on a very important question. As you rightly know, it is consumer credit that we do at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

We have reason to believe, because we have already been reaching out to service members and service-member families...

We need a budget because these are very large and powerful financial institutions who hire armies of lawyers to design financial products that can't be read by ordinary American families.

It is a 'no.' We already have our first example of what we are doing lowers compliance costs.

I think it likely makes them a little more secure.

You now have this new consumer agency, and you can do something about this.

Well, you tell your farmers that, because of the language in this particular part of the statute, the lawyers are working on it right now.

No, ma'am. We are trying to lower costs for them.

These systems are not designed to be responsive.

I don't want to overpromise, because I am not sure how many things you have read.

I worry how long we will be able to keep those people when the siren song of money from elsewhere continues to play.

We don't set our own salaries. They're set by Federal statute.

In terms of funding, yes, we are different. We have capped funding.

I certainly hope that's the case, and I also want to say, it's a little piece of the consumer agency.

Then they may want to go to www.usaspending.gov. It will list the type of contract, the awardee, and the amount of the contract.

Congressman, we are in the process, for example, of developing our performance metrics.

I think when the consumer agency has its director and has its powers ready to go, fully operational, will be a very good day.

Yes, ma'am, that is right.

Yes, sir. That would be new regulations that would replace the older, complicated, more complex regulations.

Sir, I think what enforcement mechanisms are about are making sure that the laws are properly enforced.

Congressman, no one is hiding anything. We publish all contracts in--it is not called a Federal Register.