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Op-ed: Republican efforts to limit ESG investing are anti-capitalist
CNBC ^ | January 13, 2023 | Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii and Martin Heinrich, D-N.M.

Posted on 01/13/2023 6:56:52 AM PST by Oldeconomybuyer

There is a cohort of elected officials in the United States presently engaged in an anti-capitalist crusade against free-market principles. No, they are not socialists. They are congressional Republicans, and they are attempting to prevent financial institutions from allocating capital in accordance with investor preferences and risk management principles. This attempted crackdown is purely ideological in nature — it is an exercise in political pressure to force a gross government overreach into U.S. capital markets.

This campaign, which should offend anyone with even a modicum of pro-market sensibilities, is being championed from within the Republican Party. Republican state lawmakers and members of Congress are attempting to stifle the growth of sustainable investing and to punish corporate efforts at climate-related financial risk management.

If it seems that elected Republicans have very suddenly awakened to the momentum toward climate risk reporting and the popularity of so-called environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing, and dramatically stepped up their counteroffensive accordingly, that is no coincidence. This is a closely coordinated political effort driven by a network of dark money organizations fronting for climate denial groups and fossil fuel interests.

There is no reason to think Republicans will stop with ESG; next, they could very well be telling investors not to put their money in tech companies or companies with unions. It is a stunning exercise in bald-faced hypocrisy from the party that so often claims to champion free-market values. The intent of their effort is very straightforward: to create a chilling effect and force financial firms to disregard the market’s preferences and regulators to disregard actual risk. Wall Street — and its regulators — must not be intimidated.

(Excerpt) Read more at cnbc.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Editorial; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: brianschathispantz; brianschatz; climate; esg; globalism; globalwarming; greatreset; hoax; investing; martinheindlick; martinheinrich; marxism; propaganda; senatorwhitesonly; sheldonwhitehouse; sheldonwhitesonly; socialism; theheindlickmaneuver
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1 posted on 01/13/2023 6:56:52 AM PST by Oldeconomybuyer
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Capitalism can be great, or it can suck.

This is example of how Capitalism sucks.


2 posted on 01/13/2023 6:58:22 AM PST by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

More soft fascism from the left.

No, you HAVE to invest in environmentalism, social equity, and other leftie causes or you’re not capitalist.


3 posted on 01/13/2023 6:58:31 AM PST by struggle
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To: dfwgator

BS - capitalism means growth of capital and profit.

Forcing people into investments that will lose money is socialism.


4 posted on 01/13/2023 6:59:26 AM PST by Skywise
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

BWAAA HA HA HA

( deep breath )

AAAHHH HA HA HA HA.


5 posted on 01/13/2023 6:59:49 AM PST by cuz1961 (USCGR Veteran )
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To: cuz1961

Wait....

Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii and Martin Heinrich, D-N.M. were being serious.?

So ridiculous.


6 posted on 01/13/2023 7:02:17 AM PST by cuz1961 (USCGR Veteran )
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To: Oldeconomybuyer
They got this exactly backwards.

7 posted on 01/13/2023 7:02:18 AM PST by BitWielder1 (I'd rather have Unequal Wealth than Equal Poverty.)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Three statists telling us what capitalism is.


8 posted on 01/13/2023 7:03:31 AM PST by Army Air Corps (Four Fried Chickens and a Coke)
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To: struggle

There is always Capitalism, it’s a question of how Capitalism is controlled.

Communism was nothing more than State Capitalism, with the State controlling the Capital.

We promote Free Enterprise, which is about Capital being controlled by the individual.


9 posted on 01/13/2023 7:04:25 AM PST by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer
The Left’s Core Strategy #1: “Pick the target and polarize it." *via Rules for Radicals

The Left’s Core Strategy #2: Scream accusations of racism (or racist attacks) at anything you don't like or which slows your agenda. *Sexism, "homophobia", etc. are also opportunities.

The Left’s Core Strategy #3: Intensely attack Republicans for doing what you are doing.

The Left’s Core Strategy #4: Attack Republicans with shallow insults in an effort to negatively influence the public's view of their character. Do not attempt to explain the insults. Think drive-by shooter.

The Left’s Core Strategy #5: When all else fails, censor speech and/or deploy violence.

Repeat
10 posted on 01/13/2023 7:07:25 AM PST by Vision (Woke is communism and it has no place in America. Election Reform Now! Obama is an evildoer.)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

3 of the DUMBEST DEMOCRATS IN THE SENATE WROTE THIS CRAP!


11 posted on 01/13/2023 7:09:01 AM PST by Ann Archy (Abortion....... The HUMAN Sacrifice to the god of Convenience.)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Investing in ESG is a function of government pressure on corporations, which is anti-capitalistic. Corporations have a fiduciary responsibility to invest in which will give the greatest return to the stockholders. ESG does not do this.


12 posted on 01/13/2023 7:15:52 AM PST by cpdiii (CANE CUTTER-DECKHAND-ROUGHNECK-OILFIELD CONSULTANT-GEOLOGIST-PILOT-PHARMACIST)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Blackrock has every right to offer a ESG fund to market to virtue signalers who want them. Investment funds did that in the seventies with the fad of socially responsible funds that went into the toilet with crappy returns relative to the general market indices and disappeared from the scene. What they don’t have a right to do is offer general stock funds that subscribe to ESG criteria for selecting stocks without advising investors in the prospectus they are employing that criteria and the limitations of their ESG investment criteria.


13 posted on 01/13/2023 7:22:36 AM PST by chuckee ( )
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

they are attempting to prevent financial institutions from allocating capital in accordance with investor preferences and risk management principles.


The biggest groups of investments in ESG plans are not among the informed, are are generally not given the option to choose or not choose ESG investments.

That is not capitalism.


14 posted on 01/13/2023 7:27:12 AM PST by lepton ("It is useless to attempt to reason a man out of a thing he was never reasoned into"--Jonathan Swift)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

I used to be amazed at how stupid some people could be - but never underestimate the stupidity of politicians. I am certain that one of the requirements to be a politician - especially a 21st Century Liberal Politician is total ignorance of basic economic principles.


15 posted on 01/13/2023 7:35:13 AM PST by PortugeeJoe
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To: Ann Archy
3 of the DUMBEST DEMOCRATS IN THE SENATE WROTE THIS CRAP!

Aides to 3 of the DUMBEST DEMOCRATS IN THE SENATE WROTE THIS CRAP!

16 posted on 01/13/2023 7:50:59 AM PST by BlackbirdSST (Trump WON!!! He will win 2024!)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

BS Article.

ESG leads to and contains the seeds of public Social Credit Scoring. CHI COM methods.

And I can show you where companies show the ChiCom connection on their public website. For real. (I despise one of the companies, had really shabby treatment from them 2 years ago.)

Ask and I will give you one clear link. Complete with pretty Chinese lady as seen on Twitter (following everyone who says anything critical of the CCP)


17 posted on 01/13/2023 7:52:45 AM PST by Texas Fossil ((Texas is not where you were born, but a Free State of Heart, Mind & Attitude!))
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To: Oldeconomybuyer
Like Democrats actually care about capitalism (spoiler: they don't).
18 posted on 01/13/2023 7:58:45 AM PST by Major Matt Mason (To solve the Democrat problem, the RINO problem must first be solved.)
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To: cuz1961

19 posted on 01/13/2023 8:02:35 AM PST by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

ESG is communism and abdication of fiduciary responsibility for companies that practice it.


20 posted on 01/13/2023 9:03:43 AM PST by mrmeyer (You can't conquer a free man; the most you can do is kill him. Robert Heinlein)
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