McHenry to lead GOP on banking panel, duel with Maxine Waters

Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) was selected Friday to be the top Republican on the House committee in charge of the financial sector, his office announced in a statement.

McHenry will serve as the ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee in 2019 after he ran unopposed for the position. He will serve as the GOP foil to Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), who’s in line to lead the panel next year.

{mosads}McHenry, the committee’s vice chairman, said he was “honored” to be chosen and touted his “deep understanding of the important role this committee plays in advancing meaningful public policy that helps American families and small businesses.”

“In the two years ahead, I look forward to working with my colleagues — both Republicans and Democrats alike — to produce innovative solutions that increase access to banking services and credit for all Americans,” McHenry said,

McHenry announced earlier this month that he would seek the top GOP on the Financial Services committee and succeed retiring chairman Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas). He was widely expected to clinch the spot after Republicans lost the House majority in the midterm election.

McHenry, the House GOP chief deputy whip, was poised to climb the leadership ladder if Republicans maintained control of the lower chamber.

Instead, McHenry will face off with Waters as she attempts to rebuild the post-financial crisis bank rules dismantled by Republicans and defend the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) from attempts to rein it in.

McHenry will also contend with several planned Waters-led probes into President Trump’s personal finances, sales scandals at Wells Fargo and money laundering at Deutsche Bank.

McHenry said he will “fight back against any efforts by Democrats to use this committee to roll back our successes from the last two years or use the committee as the launch pad for endless, partisan investigations.”

Even so, Waters told The Hill earlier this month that she and McHenry, two veterans of the panel, have a “very good” working relationship.

“I know we won’t agree on everything and I don’t know all that he’s going to propose, but I know one thing: We start out in a good relationship and ability to communicate,” Waters said.