On Tuesday morning, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in Seila Law v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the culmination of Wall Street’s sustained assault on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Killing off the CFPB would be a blow to the countless Americans this agency protects. But the powerful forces attacking the CFPB have even greater aspirations. They desire to cripple Congress’ ability to establish independent agencies to safeguard Americans’ health, safety and economic welfare. 

The CFPB has been a success, winning back over $12 billion for defrauded consumers since 2011. Other independent agencies—the Federal Trade Commission, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Reserve—are similarly ingrained in our democratic system. Americans expect them to regulate the marketplace impartially, expertly, and based on evidence and facts. Their constitutional legitimacy has long been beyond question. That is, until now.