Published: February 2017

Mnuchin unfit to serve as Treasury Secretary—Senate should oppose nomination

88 advocacy groups signed a letter to the Senate voicing grave concerns about President Trump’s nominee for Treasury Secretary, former Goldman Sachs partner and OneWest Bank Chairman, Steve Mnuchin. Mnuchin, known as “The Foreclosure King,” oversaw the eviction of nearly 50,000 families from their homes during the foreclosure crisis. The bank’s aggressive foreclosure practices targeted the country’s vulnerable populations—particularly the elderly  and widowed. By approving his nomination, the Senate is putting its stamp of approval on his alarming record and choosing to rig the rules for the wealthy rather than protect American families.

As the President’s principal economic adviser, the position of Treasury Secretary holds an important significance to the American economy.  The Treasury Department must ensure the U.S. economy works better for the majority of Americans, not just the wealthiest. Under Mnuchin's direction, OneWest foreclosed on more widowers and seniors than any other bank during the housing crisis, including a 90-year old woman over a 27-cent payment error.

Advocates, including Consumer Action, have opposed his banking and housing practices for years through protests, federal complaints and in court and are worried that what his bank and mortgage customers experienced could prove to be a microcosm of how he might treat the country in an important role like Secretary of the U.S. Treasury.

Lead Organization

Take On Wall Street

Other Organizations

AFL-CIO | Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment Action | Allied Progress | American Family Voices | American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) | American Federation of Teachers | Americans for Tax Fairness | CHEC Inc. | CREDO | California Reinvestment Coalition | Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good | Center for Community Change Action | Center for Corporate Responsibility | Center for Popular Democracy Action | Communications Workers of America | Consumer Action | Consumer Federation of America | Courage Campaign | Daily Kos | Democracy for America | Fighting for Our Lives | Franciscan Action Network | Free Press Action Fund | Friends of the Earth | Fuse Washington | Institute for Policy Studies, Global Economy Project | Juma Ventures | The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights | Main Street Alliance | Media Voices for Children | Metro Fair Housing Services, Inc. | MoveOn | NAACP | NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice | National Association of Consumer Advocates | National Center for Lesbian Rights | National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development (National CAPACD) | National Employment Law Project | National Fair Housing Alliance | National LGBTQ Task Force Action Fund | Open Communities | Opportunity Fund | Other98 Action | PICO National Network | People's Action | Presente.org | ProgressNow | Progressive Change Campaign Committee | Public Citizen | Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association | ReFund America Project | Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center | The Rootstrikers project at Demand Progress | Strong Economy For All Coalition | U.S. PIRG | UNITE HERE | Voices for Progress | Women's Voices | Women Vote Action Fund | Woodstock Institute | Working America | Working Families Party

More Information

For more information, visit Take On Wall Street.

Download PDF

Mnuchin unfit to serve as Treasury Secretary—Senate should oppose nomination   (LetterOpposingMnuchin.compressed.pdf)