[9][10] On June 16, 2018, White House Deputy Press Secretary Lindsay Walters announced that President Donald Trump would nominate Kraninger as Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau,[11] a position then held by OMB Director Mick Mulvaney.

Public records show that Kraninger held nearly two dozen meetings with multiple top-level officials from DHS, ICE and USCIS leading up to the family separation policy's implementation.

[16][17] During the confirmation hearings, Kraninger declined to answer questions about her involvement in the family separation policy.

[18][19] In 2019, Kraninger sided with the Trump administration's Department of Justice in arguing that the CFPB had too much independence.

[20] In July 2020, Kraninger instituted a new rule at the CFPB whereby payday lenders would no longer have to check whether prospective borrowers can afford to repay high-interest loans.