Kraninger served as an associate director in the Office of Management and Budget in the Trump administration.[9] As an associate program director, she oversaw $250 billion in funding for seven cabinet departments and other federal agencies, including the United States Departments of Commerce, Homeland Security, Justice, Housing and Urban Development, and Treasury.[9][10]
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (2018–2021)
On June 16, 2018, White House Deputy Press Secretary Lindsay Walters announced that President Donald Trump would nominate Kraninger as Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau,[11] a position then held by OMB Director Mick Mulvaney. Consumer groups and Senate conservatives criticized her nomination for her perceived lack of qualifications.[12] She had no experience in financial industry regulation or in consumer protection matters.[13][14] Senator Elizabeth Warren threatened to block the nomination over Kraninger's role in the Trump administration's family separation policy, which drew criticism for separating migrant children from their parents at the U.S./Mexico border.[15] As part of her role in the OMB, Kraninger would have likely been involved in coordinating policies such as the family separation policy. Public records show that Kraninger held nearly two dozen meetings with multiple top-level officials from DHS, ICE and USCIS leading up to the family separation policy's implementation.[16][17] During the confirmation hearings, Kraninger declined to answer questions about her involvement in the family separation policy.[13]
Kraninger was confirmed on December 6, 2018, in a 50–49 party-line vote.[18][19]
In 2019, Kraninger sided with the Trump administration's Department of Justice in arguing that the CFPB had too much independence. The Trump administration had argued since 2017 that the CFPB was unconstitutional. Before she took over, the CFPB had defended itself from the Trump administration's claims of unconstitutionality. During her confirmation hearing in 2018, Kraninger had said that it would be up to Congress and the courts to resolve whether the CFPB was unconstitutional.[20]
In July 2020, Kraninger instituted a new rule at the CFPB whereby payday lenders would no longer have to check whether prospective borrowers can afford to repay high-interest loans.[21]
Kraninger resigned from her position on January 20, 2021, at the request of the incoming Biden administration.[22]
^Sullivan, Emily (December 6, 2018). "Senate Confirms Kathy Kraninger As CFPB Director". NPR. Retrieved January 17, 2020. The Senate voted 50–49 Thursday to back Kraninger as head of the consumer protection watchdog agency.
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