The individuals in question are Lorelei Salas, the CFPB’s supervision director, Eric Halperin, the agency’s enforcement chief, and Zixta Martinez, the agency's deputy director. The decision to place them on leave was made by the CFPB's Chief Legal Officer, Mark Paoletta.
As reported by Fox News, this development follows a directive from Russ Vought, the acting director of the Office of Management and Budget, instructing CFPB employees not to report to work without written approval for any work tasks. This directive echoed a similar one issued earlier in February by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who briefly served as acting CFPB director before Vought. Bessent had also instructed staff to cease their work "unless expressly approved by the Acting Director or required by law."
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In a surprising twist, Halperin chose to resign rather than comply with the leave order. According to the agency spokesperson, Halperin was informed of his leave via email and responded within six minutes, announcing his resignation. His response reportedly read, "I write to provide notice of my resignation… Since the building is closed, please provide instructions on how to return my equipment. Thank you for the opportunity to serve. It was an honor."
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Salas, on the other hand, responded to her leave notification with a mass email but has not officially resigned. The agency spokesperson suggested that both Halperin and Salas are claiming to have resigned in an attempt to "save face."
A spokesperson for Salas and Halperin accused the Trump administration of attempting to "sideline" government employees. They stated, "As we’ve seen many times already, Trump and Musk are trying to sideline dedicated public servants who won’t go along with their plans to break the law. CFPB staff have a responsibility to protect consumers, and that includes upholding longstanding laws on the books."
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Interestingly, both Halperin and Salas have connections to the Open Society Foundation, a nonprofit organization backed by left-wing billionaire George Soros. Halperin previously served as a senior advisor to the Foundation’s U.S. Program, while Salas received a government fellowship from the same organization.
The CFPB, an independent government agency, was established under the Obama administration in 2010 following the 2008 financial crash. Its primary role is to protect consumers from unfair financial practices in the private sector.
Recently, the Department of Government Efficiency, led by Elon Musk, has been investigating various federal agencies in an effort to identify and eliminate government overspending, fraud, and corruption. Musk's cryptic message on X, "CFPB RIP," hinted at the CFPB being next in line for investigation.
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This has sparked protests outside the CFPB headquarters in Washington, with Democratic Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who originally proposed the agency, leading the charge. Warren declared, "We are here to fight back," and accused Musk of attempting to dismantle the agency. "This is like a bank robber trying to fire the cops and turn off the alarm just before he strolls into the lobby," she said. "The financial cops, the CFPB, are there to make sure that Elon’s new project can’t scam you or steal your sensitive personal data. So Elon’s solution, get rid of the cops, kill the CFPB."
