A group of Republican senators is looking to head off a new Biden administration rule that would force companies managing Americans' retirement funds to direct investments into left-wing political activism.
“In November, the Biden administration's Department of Labor finalized the Prudence and Loyalty in Selecting Plan Investments and Exercising Shareholder Rights rule, which allows fiduciaries to consider “climate change and other environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors” when they make investments or proxy vote for shareholders,” U.S. Senator John Kennedy reports.
Under “ESG” requirements, companies are banned from investing in companies involved in oil, coal, natural gas, firearms or any other industry deemed a political opponent to liberalism.
Investments would instead be directed to companies based on identity groups or political beliefs, with the aim of using billions of dollars of other people's retirement funds to subsidize left-wing political activism.
The new Biden scheme undoes a Trump administration rule requiring fund managers to focus on financial factors to reduce the risk of loss. A study published by the Harvard Business Review found that investments based on “ESG” performed poorly. This “ESG” rule places millions of Americans at risk of losing their retirement savings.
Lawmakers, looking to head off a national retirement crisis, are moving to block Biden's plan to hijack retirement funds.
Sens. John Kennedy, R-La., Mike Braun, R-Ind., Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn., James Lankford, R-Okla., and Richard Burr, R-N.C., have introduced a Congressional Review Act resolution, S.J. Res. 68, which would nullify the proposed Biden rule.
Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., is leading a similar effort in the House of Representatives.
“President Biden's attempt to use Americans' retirement plans to bankroll the woke agenda is fiscally irresponsible and morally wrong. Congress must reject this rule before American families suffer even more just so that Biden can support the Left's pet projects,” said Kennedy.
“When American workers invest in their retirement, they should be able to trust their financial advisors to be investing with their best interests in mind, not the interests of liberal activists. American retirement funds have already taken such a hit from Joe Biden's failed economic policies, they should not be politicized. I am proud to lead my colleagues in this effort to overturn the Biden administration's woke 401k rule and protect Americans' retirement funds,” said Braun.
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.
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