Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) warned Republicans on Monday that blocking President Barack Obama’s nominees only produced a dysfunctional government.

“I am new to the Senate, but I don’t understand why this body accepts a system where this kind of political stalemate won’t end in more government or less government but just in bad government – government that lacks the consistency, clarity, and predictability that honest businesses and hard-working families need to plan a future,” she said on the Senate floor.

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In particular, Warren urged Senate Republicans to confirm Richard Cordray as the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The relatively new federal agency, which Warren helped establish, regulates financial goods and services like mortgages and credit cards.

Senate Republicans have said they will not confirm a director for the bureau unless it is substantially weakened.

“I don’t understand why we would let an honorable public servant like Rich Cordray get stuck in this nonsense,” Warren continued. “I don’t understand why, when everyone says Rich is terrific, that we can’t just vote on his appointment. I know that some Republicans and lobbyists think that this filibuster on Rich’s appointment can shut down the work of the agency. They think it can shut down the agency and protect the big banks from any meaningful consumer protection rules.”

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