WASHINGTON — DNC Chair Tom Perez released the following statement after Donald Trump’s Treasury Department released its recommendation for gutting the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau:

“Democrats fought to establish the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in the wake of a financial collapse that robbed working families of their savings, their homes, and their hope. Over the past seven years, the CFPB has been vital in protecting the American people from getting swindled by big businesses and has returned nearly $12 billion to consumers.

“Now Steve Mnuchin, Donald Trump, and Republicans in Congress want to gut this critical agency, strip it of its independence and let Wall Street run wild. They’re not even hiding the fact that they’re looking to protect their billionaire buddies over middle class families. In fact, Secretary Mnuchin is now admitting that President Trump would sign a tax plan that gives a massive windfall to the wealthiest Americans. It’s clear that the Trump administration’s priority is to satisfy Wall Street greed on the backs of working families. And Democrats will fight them at every turn.”