Obama: Warren Will Fight for Middle Class

President Obama named Wall Street critic Elizabeth Warren a special adviser today and tasked her with setting up a new agency to look out for consumers. Calling Warren "one of the country's fiercest advocates for the middle class," Obama said the new bureau would end abusive practices. "Never again will folks be confused or misled by pages of barely understandable fine print that you find in agreements for credit cards or mortgages or student loans," he said.

Obama credited Warren with developing the concept of the consumer agency, and said, "It only makes sense that she should be the architect." But Obama is not nominating Warren to be the consumer bureau's director, a move that allows her to avoid a lengthy fight with Senate Republicans who view her as too critical of Wall Street and big banks to be confirmed. As a result, she can start immediately. Warren designed the advisory role during long conversations with White House officials, said one insider. To see more about Warren, click here. (More Elizabeth Warren stories.)