Wall Street regulators began an exodus from Washington, D.C., yesterday as Mary Jo White, the chairwoman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, announced plans to leave the agency, the New York Times reported today. The decision makes White, a former federal prosecutor who has served more than two decades in the federal government, the first major Obama administration appointee to step down after Donald J. Trump’s upset victory last week. Other financial regulators are expected to follow suit in the coming weeks. White was expected to leave no matter the outcome of the election, but many Democrats had hoped that if Hillary Clinton won, she would choose a strong proponent of regulation to succeed White. Trump has vowed to dismantle Dodd-Frank, the financial regulatory overhaul Congress passed in response to the 2008 financial crisis.
