A week of bad, good news for Cordray

It was a down-and-up week for former Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray.

The downer came with President Donald Trump signing a resolution Wednesday that axed a rule enacted in July by the federal agency Cordray heads, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, that had allowed class action lawsuits against banks and credit card companies.

Trump’s action, which followed approval by the GOP-controlled House and Senate, restored the financial institutions’ ability to essentially require arbitration to settle customer disputes instead of litigation.

But what wasn’t widely reported was a conversation immediately after the bill signing about the future of the Grove City resident, still regarded as a possible Democratic candidate for governor.

Rep. Jeb Hensarling, chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, who has become Cordray’s nemesis, urged Trump to dump Cordray, CNBC’s Kayla Tausche reported, citing eight sources. The Texas congressman said he and a colleague could quickly draw up papers justifying the move, which must be made “for cause.”

But Trump, after polling those around his desk, ultimately rejected the proposal. It is reported that he said he doesn’t want to turn Cordray into a political martyr and possibly strengthen a Democratic gubernatorial candidate in a key state — a position echoed by Ohio Republican Party insiders. Cordray’s term ends in July 2018, but the filing deadline for governor is February.

The conversation ended, CNBC was told, “in a New York second” when White House chief of staff John Kelly entered the room and suggested the discussion be taken “offline.”

Cordray’s good news

The best part of Cordray’s week came when word broke Friday that the U.S. Office of Special Counsel had found “no evidence” that he violated the Hatch Act — which prohibits politicking by federal employees — in response to a complaint from the GOP group America Rising Squared. Hensarling also has frequently questioned the legality of Cordray’s exploration of a possible gubernatorial run.

Federal law allows Cordray to discuss a possible candidacy with family and close friends, research that would be required to run or “making inquiries to understand the current political landscape,” said Erica Hamrick, deputy chief of the office’s Hatch Act unit, in a two-page letter dated Oct. 12.

More good news

But wait, there’s more. An inspector general’s report found that Cordray’s agency is doing a good job complying with the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act.

That’s Washington’s way of saying the information the consumer bureau posts on USAspending.gov is timely and fulfills the 2014 law’s goal of providing useful information to the public and policymakers.

Early voting is up

So with the record high spending on state Issue 2, the controversial proposal involving drug prices, are Franklin County voters showing more interest in this year’s election?

So it seems. Through Friday, the number of mailed absentee ballots were up 9 percent, and in-person voting is nearly 1.5 times as much as in 2013, the most recent comparable election year, the county elections board says.

Of course, four years ago Ohio had no statewide issues.