What will Trump’s Dodd-Frank rollback look like?

The president doesn’t actually have the power to end Dodd-Frank by executive order. But those orders could influence how the act is enforced

By Ryan Smith

06 Feb 2017

President Donald Trump moved Friday to roll back the controversial Dodd-Frank Act. But how will the rollback work?

Trump announced several steps Friday to undo rules enacted under Dodd-Frank. After a meeting with business executives, he signed a directive calling for the rewriting of major provisions in the act, according to a New York Times report. Another directive he signed is expected to roll back a Labor Department rule that required financial advisors to act in their clients’ best interests. Trump said the directives were intended to ease the regulatory burdens on banks and enable them to lend money more freely.

“We expect to be cutting a lot out of Dodd-Frank because frankly, I have so many people, friends of mine that had nice businesses, they can’t borrow money,” Trump said during his meeting with business leaders. “They just can’t get any money because the banks just won’t let them borrow it because of the rules and regulations in Dodd-Frank.”

Democrats and consumer groups were quick to blast the orders as love letters to Wall Street.

:The administration apparently plans to turn over financial regulation to Wall Street titan Goldman Sachs, and make it easier for them and other big banks like Wells Fargo to steal from their customers and destabilize the economy,” Lisa Donner, executive director for Americans for Financial Reform, said in a statement. “That betrays the promises Trump made to stand up to Wall Street, and it will have dire consequences if he’s successful.”

Trump doesn’t actually have the authority to roll back Dodd-Frank by executive order, the Times reported. However, his executive orders can set the tone for how zealously federal agencies enforce existing rules.

And the White House said Friday that it would work with Congress on legislation to further address the rollback of Dodd-Frank regulations, according to a Reuters report.