It came after negotiations that ended a stalemate between Senate Republicans and Democrats over presidential nominations and the threat of the so-called “nuclear option” that would change Senate rules affecting filibusters.
In a statement, Cordray said his confirmation will allow the work he has done over the last two years to continue.
The key vote came early in the day when the Senate, by a vote of 71-29, agreed to end debate on Cordray’s nomination, a procedural necessity for him to be formally confirmed. Both Brown and Portman voted to end debate.
By confirming Cordray, the Senate effectively ended speculation that Cordray will return to Ohio to seek the Democratic nomination for governor in 2014. The vote assures that Cordray can remain in his post for five years, going beyond even the remainder of President Barack Obama’s second term.
“With Cordray’s confirmation, Ohio and the nation can finally close this chapter and rest safer knowing that Rich is on the job,” Ohio Democratic Party Chairman Chris Redfern said.
Cordray has long been mentioned as a possible opponent next year to Republican Gov. John Kasich. The vote would appear to clear the path for Cuyahoga County Executive Ed FitzGerald to be the Democrats’ choice to run against Kasich.
Senate Republicans had held up Cordray’s nomination not because of concerns about the Columbus area native’s qualifications or performance but because they objected to the design of the agency, known as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
Portman was among a group of GOP senators who demanded that the bureau be overseen by a five-member board instead of a single director. They also wanted Congress to finance its operations.
Obama had originally nominated Cordray to direct the new bureau in July 2011, but Republicans used Senate rules that December to block a confirmation vote.
Obama then installed Cordray — as well as three members of the National Labor Relations Board — in January 2012 with a recess appointment, a power often used by Presidents to fill a vacancy when the Senate is in recess. The Supreme Court is reviewing whether Obama violated his constitutional authority by making the NLRB appointments. Although Republicans had initially argued that Cordray’s appointment counted in those legal challenges, the Senate vote Tuesday effectively codifies Cordray’s role and eliminates any legal hurdles.
Under the deal struck on Tuesday, Obama will pull the nominations of Sharon Block and Richard Griffin from the NLRB and nominate two others. The Senate would then vote quickly on the two replacement nominees, as well as on Cordray, EPA administrator nominee Gina McCarthy and Labor Secretary nominee Tom Perez. The vote on Cordray was the only one taken on Tuesday.
The fight over the nominations had become so contentious that in recent days, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., had threatened to change the Senate rules to make it possible for a simple majority of the Senate to approve Cordray’s nomination.
The proposal was called “the nuclear option,” and many lamented that changing the rules would destroy Senate tradition and lead to a less collegial Senate where a simple majority would be able to craft dramatic change. Currently, the Senate must vote to end debate by 60 votes before an issue proceeds to a final vote.
Both sides were so entrenched that the Senate held a rare meeting late Monday to try to work out a deal. They left after nearly four hours seemingly without having done so.
But by Tuesday morning, the tide had turned. “It is a compromise, and I think we get what we want, (Republicans) get what they want,” Reid said. “Not a bad deal.”
Portman said he would introduce a bill to create an inspector general devoted solely to that agency in order to hold it accountable. Under current law, the agency has to share an inspector general with the Federal Reserve.
Portman said he was heartened that Cordray has agreed to brief the the Senate Appropriations Committee on his agency’s budget. The Republican senator also is pushing Cordray to have the White House Office of Management and Budget conduct a cost-benefit analysis of any new agency regulations.
In his statement, Portman said, “For nearly two years, we have been focused on making consumer finance markets work better for the American people. Today’s action brings added certainty to the industries we oversee and reinforces our responsibility to stand on the side of consumers and see that they are treated fairly in the financial marketplace.”
Brown, meanwhile, called the Senate’s deal “good news,” saying that Republicans’ blocking the nomination “set such a bad precedent. Never in Senate history has it been the case that someone was blocked because they didn’t like the agency.”
Brown said while “nobody wanted” to change Senate rules to force the nomination, Democrats had originally felt as if they had little choice. “When it really isn’t about the nominees — the Senate can’t operate that way,” he said.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was created by Congress in 2010 as part of a major overhaul by Congress of financial regulations. The bureau is tasked with helping consumers by requiring financial institutions to simplify products such as home mortgage loans and credit cards.
Jack Torry of the Washington Bureau contributed to this report.
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