Biden Administration

President Joe Biden quelled for now a brewing confrontation with progressive Democrats with a new moratorium on evictions during the pandemic, but the order invites a legal fight with high-stakes consequences for public health that the government may well lose.

President Joe Biden and top White House officials sought Monday to stave off a wave of evictions after the expiration of a federal moratorium, pressing federal, state and local government agencies to act quickly to stop tenants from losing their homes.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency confirmed it will rescind an unpopular rule overhauling the Community Reinvestment Act and joined other agencies in calling for a renewed interagency effort.

Graham Steele, a former Senate Banking Committee staffer who has supported strong regulation, was named as the administration's choice for assistant secretary of financial institutions.

One provision calls for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to look at unfair, deceptive or abusive acts and practices regarding competition.

Those handling loan modifications anticipate a growing secondary market for loans in forbearance as they budget cautiously for additional alterations of regulations down the road.

The president has a chance to make his mark on the central bank as the terms of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and Vice Chair of Supervision Randal Quarles near their end. He will face pressure from progressives to pick reform-minded leaders, while moderate Democrats and Republicans in the narrowly divided Senate might favor reappointing Powell.

The White House is calling on the Department of Justice and federal regulators to give bank deals more scrutiny as part of a broader executive order meant to encourage competition across the U.S. economy.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency recently became the third agency along with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau without a Senate-confirmed leader. But analysts say the appointment of interim chiefs gives the administration even more control over regulatory initiatives.

The White House's firing of Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Mark Calabria sparked immediate speculation about who will run the agency and help chart the future of the two mortgage giants. Potential nominees include ex-Obama administration officials, congressional staffers and members of the Biden transition team.