OMB head Mick Mulvaney told bankers that more money will get them more access

In a meeting with bank executives, Mick Mulvaney, interim director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, told them they should increase their campaign donations to have leverage over lawmakers, reported the New York Times.

“We had a hierarchy in my office in Congress, Mulvaney said at the American Bankers Association conference in Washington. “If you’re a lobbyist who never gave us money, I didn’t talk to you. If you’re a lobbyist who gave us money, I might talk to you.”

Mulvaney's goal is to stop funding from independent entities such as the Federal Reserve. This action would give lawmakers influence on the bureau’s actions. He said this tactic was, “fundamental underpinnings of our representative democracy. And you have to continue to do it. If you came from back home and sat in my lobby, I talked to you without exception, regardless of the financial contributions."

A spokesman for Mr. Mulvaney responded to a comment made by John Czwartacki. He said: “He was making the point that hearing from people back home is vital to our democratic process and the most important thing our representatives can do. It’s more important than lobbyists and it’s more important than money.”

Mulvaney  also runs the White House budget office, and has been longtime critic of the Obama-era consumer bureau. In his role he has already restricted the bureau’s access to bank data, and hopes to take his initiatives further.