President Obama, Richard Cordray Meet With The Best Piemaker In Cleveland, Ohio

Before announcing Cordray's recess appointment, President gets gift of Sweet Potato Pie from locally famous pie maven Endia Eason...
President Obama's favorite dessert is pie, and early Wednesday afternoon he got a sweet gift as he met with 91-year-old Endia Eason of Cleveland, Ohio, who is famous among her neighbors as an accomplished crustmaster. Before he announced the controversial recess appointment of Richard Cordray as chief of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the President and his newly minted consumer watchdog had a twenty-minute meet n' greet with Mrs. Eason at her home. William Eason, a Marine Corps veteran, was also on hand for the dinner table confab, and they discussed how the couple went into debt and almost lost their home due to what the President described as the "trickery and abuse" of an unscrupulous mortgage broker. (Above: The President and Mrs. Eason share a laugh)

"Ms. Eason makes a really good sweet potato pie. She gave me one," President Obama told his audience of more than 1,200 at Shaker Heights High School after the meeting, as he formally announced Cordray's appointment. "I’m going to eat it later, after."

"I didn't want to eat it before because I didn't want to get sleepy having a big piece of pie right before."

In prepared remarks released by the White House, the President was due to say that Mrs. Eason is "known for making some of the best pies in Cleveland," but during his speech he exchanged this compliment for the more personal anecdote about the gift of pie. The President adores Sweet Potato Pie, according to First Lady Obama.

The elderly pie maven first became the face of the White House campaign for Cordray in early December of 2011, when she appeared in a CNN report about Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner's efforts to get Cordray confirmed. Mrs. Eason told CNN she'd like to bake Geithner a pie--or cook him dinner. (Above: Mr. Eason speaks as Cordray, the President, Mrs. Eason, and Deonna Kirkpatrick of housing non-profit Empowering & Strengthening Ohio’s People listen)

“My pies are the best pies in town – they’ve been saying that for years,” Eason said. “I make apple, sweet potato, peach and cherry.”

"We’re so glad that we've got somebody like Rich Cordray..."
At the Eason dinner table, the President blasted the unscrupulous mortgage broker who left the Easons $80,000 in debt after attaching fees to a home loan refinance that was supposed to get their house repaired.

"It's a good example of the kinds of trickery and abuse in the non-bank financial sector that we’re going to have to do something about," President Obama said.

"And we’re so glad that we've got somebody like Rich Cordray who’s willing to take this on and make sure that families like the Easons, who've done the right thing, who've been responsible, who've served their country, that they’re not taken advantage of and they’re able to live in security and dignity in their golden years."

The President also told the reporters packed into the small dining room that the Easons have been married for 42 years, and hailed Mr. Eason's service during the Korean War.

"He’s not mentioning he also used to be a boxer, so if you guys break anything in here you could be in trouble," the President joked.

A crowd of fans awaited President Obama outside the Easons' snow-covered home as he departed to make his speech At SHaker Heights High at 12:50.

Cordray starts work immediately...
Cordray, former Attorney General of Ohio, will ostensibly have the non-banking financial sector on a tight leash as part of his role as what the White House bills as "America's Consumer Watchdog." Work will start immediately, Cordray told reporters before the President's speech.

"We're gonna begin working to expand our program to non-banks, which is an area we haven't been able to touch up until now," Cordray said.

Press Secretary Jay Carney today called Cordray's recess appointment "a no brainer." It is part of the President's "We Can't Wait" campaign, in which he uses Executive Power to accomplish his mission without waiting for a Congress. In his final weekly address of 2011, President Obama vowed to move ahead without Congress whenever he feels it is necessary.

GOP leaders early Wednesday morning were already blasting the Cordray appointment, and have suggested they'll file a lawsuit to block it, among other actions.

Above, the President holds a baby as he greets supporters outside the Cordray home.

*Second and last photo by Pete Souza/White House; others by AP/pool