Sen. Bob Corker, the Tennessee Republican who's been taking the lead in financial regulatory reform negotiations, said Monday that reports of an agreed-to compromise over the Consumer Financial Protection Agency are premature.
"I wouldn't put a lot of stock in leaked memos," Corker told Huffington Post.
The memo, which is a scanned-in PDF rather than the type of electronic document that typically comes from a Hill staffer or senator, was circulating on K Street before it was leaked to the press.
News of a weakened CFPA proposal from Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) was first reported in the New York Times and then followed up on by HuffPost and other outlets, prompting consumer groups to publicly slam the proposal and Dodd to insist that he still supports strong legislation. (The Times didn't post the document online, but it can be found here.)
Corker said negotiations are ongoing: "We had a very productive weekend. Dodd and I met yesterday at one. Our staffs worked until one or two o'clock in the morning last night. Things continue to go well," he said.
The memo, Corker said, is outdated. "The thing that's odd about it is it's so old," he said of the Dodd proposal. "It's multiple iterations behind where we are."
Kirstin Brost, a spokeswoman for Dodd, said that nothing has been finalized. "This is just one of several proposals that Dodd has put forth as he tries to find a way to protect consumers," she told HuffPost.
Corker took over the lead role from top-ranking committee Republican Richard Shelby of Alabama when Shelby refused to budge on the CFPA. But Dodd is still working with both lawmakers.
Corker wouldn't say whether he agreed with the specific provisions outlined in the Dodd proposal.
"I made an agreement not to discuss my policy issues until we get finished," he said.