Financial watchdog would be defanged if Trump gets his way

WASHINGTON — The Trump administration called for the neutering of many of the central provisions of the Doddfrank Act as it offered its most detailed plans to date for the unraveling of the financial regulations put in place after the 2008 financial crisis.

In a report released late Monday, the Treasury Department said the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau should be substantially stripped of its powers, accusing the agency of regulatory overreach and saying the president should be able to remove its director. It also recommended greater exemptions from the so-called Volcker Rule, which bans banks from trading for their own gain, and it called for rules to be revised to give small community banks relief from regulatory scrutiny such as stress tests.

“Properly structuring regulation of the U.S. financial system is critical to achieve the administration’s goal of sustained economic growth and to create opportunities for all Americans to benefit from a stronger economy,” said Steven Mnuchin, the Treasury secretary.

The recommendations were written with an eye toward easing regulations imposed on community banks and all but the largest credit unions after the financial crisis.

President Donald Trump asked for the report in February, giving the Treasury Department the authority to restructure