President Joe Biden's veto of an anti-ESG bill passed with bipartisan support in Congress isn't sitting well with even the most liberal Republicans.
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT), whom many conservatives consider a Republican in name only (RINO), and who might just vote with Democrats more than any other lawmaker in his party, called the veto a "mistake" and an "inappropriate" way to "advance Washington Democrats’ ideological preferences" in a tweet on Monday.
This is a mistake. Democrats can’t get their radical policies through Congress, so they hope asset managers will do the work for them. It is completely inappropriate to use the retirement funds of hard-working Americans to advance Washington Democrats’ ideological preferences. https://t.co/e4iYLQK31N
— Senator Mitt Romney (@SenatorRomney) March 20, 2023
The bill would have banned money managers from considering environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards when investing money for others' retirement by reversing a Biden Labor Department rule allowing ESG to be considered.
ESG standards would exempt fossil fuel companies and those that don't accept woke social positions from being invested in by a massive segment of the market--retirement savings. If ESG standards are widely implemented, it could put these companies out of business, causing consumer prices to skyrocket as demand outstrips supply.
Both sides are saying the other side's policy threatens Americans' retirement savings, with Biden saying, he doesn't want to make it "illegal to consider risk factors MAGA House Republicans don't like."
But ESG is nothing more than social and financial engineering that is meant to force Americans to follow radical progressive policies by taking away the choice to do otherwise.
Biden correctly pointed out that the rule only allows money managers to choose ESG, but of course, massive pressure will then be applied to force them to do so. The implications of choosing a political agenda over investment returns could change the entire financial system.
Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy explained the rationale for the bill this way:
Before Biden's Dept of Labor rule change, retirement fund managers could consider *only* investment returns. Now, Biden permits them to take into account 'collateral benefits other than investment return' including factors like 'climate change.' ... This is dangerous for both capitalism & democracy.
In other words, money managers will no longer be considering which investments they think will make money (which is dicey enough). They will now be perfectly justified in losing people's retirement money if their choices help climate change or support the LGBTQ community.
Which one of these two options threatens retirement savings again?
Biden's rule is nothing but an underhanded way to advance his radical policies largely under the noses of the American people, the majority of whom don't support them.
Unfortunately, there was not enough bipartisan support to overturn Biden's veto, so the rule will stand for now.
But if even Mitt Romney disagrees with what Biden is doing, you know it's a radical and dangerous policy indeed.
