I just got my evening email update for consumer bankruptcy issues.  The lead story is about whether the President will appoint Elizabeth Warren to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.  While this is admittedly, a bit “off-topic” for a bankruptcy blog, whoever is appointed to head the CFPB has the potential to significantly improve the lives of consumers.  Let’s keep our fingers crossed that President Obama makes the “right” call!

Elizabeth Warren is a noted consumer advocate, Wall Street bailout watchdog and Harvard Law professor.  She is also one of three candidates the White House has identified as leading contenders to head the newly-created Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The agency, conceived by Warren in a 2007 article, was created as part of the financial reform bill Obama last week signed into law.

Warren’s expertise in consumer financial matters is second to none.  Most who are following this story will admit she is the strongest candidate for the job.  However, However, the financial industry fears that Warren’s single-minded fight for the consumer will strip away their ability to charge fees and customize products. 

But, isn’t that the point of the CFPB, really?  Warren has been a tireless advocate on behalf of the voiceless in America.  Her time at Harvard University resulted in books and studies detailing the difficulties of the middle class and what causes bankruptcy in this country.   Here’s a hint – it’s not reckless spending!  In a 2005 Wall Street Journal column, Warren revealed that her study showed over half of bankruptcies were caused by illness or medical bills, and of those 3/4 had insurance at the time.  Explaining the cycle of medical debt and bankruptcy, Warren wrote:

Often, the medical bills arrived just as the insurance and the paycheck disappeared. 

Bankrupt families lost more than just assets. One out of five went without food. A third had their utilities shut off, and nearly two-thirds skipped needed doctor or dentist visits. These families struggled to stay out of bankruptcy. They arrived at the bankruptcy courthouse exhausted and emotionally spent, brought low by a health care system that could offer physical cures but that left them financially devastated.

This is someone who understands the trials and tribulations facing today’s consumers.  Elizabeth Warren has been a tireless investigator into the  real causes and impacts of consumer bankruptcy, she’s given a voice to the weakest citizens of this country, and she should be lauded as a hero for standing up for what is right and just in this world.

While the nomination to head the CFPB will not be the top story on  your local evening news, whoever is chosen could have a signficant impact on the relationship you have with your bank, lender or credit card company in the future.  This will not be a world changing nomination, but it could be the first step to leveling the playing field between you and the financial instutions who provide credit and other products to American consumers.

If it were my choice to make, I would want someone who is going to go to bat for the people.  If it were my choice, I would want someone who would look out for my rights and the rights of my clients.  If it were my choice, I would want Elizabeth Warren.