GOP AGs Battle Democrats Trying To ‘Debank’ Conservatives

Our friends at Alliance Defending Freedom have joined a multi-state letter led by Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird and Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody which counters U.S. Department of Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s recent mischaracterizations of state legislation protecting citizens from viewpoint-based discrimination in banking.

In the letter Attorneys General Bird, Moody and their colleagues told Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen the department has "forsaken its statutory role and instead chosen to intervene on behalf of activists seeking to hijack the financial system for their political ends."

"It is even more disappointing that the Treasury Department would use ‘national security’ as cover for large banks’ abuse of power to achieve those ends," the letter states.

Laws like Florida’s HB 989 purport to "protect both consumers from discrimination and entities like religious organizations, gun manufacturers, and those engaged in fossil fuel exploration from improper political pressure for their lawful and often constitutionally protected activities," the AGs wrote.

"No consumer or business should be denied services based on political beliefs or religious views or because of some arbitrary social credit score derived from ideological agendas," they added, according to reporting by Brianna Herlihy of FOX Business.

The Republican Attorneys General took issue with a Biden - Harris Treasury Department letter criticizing the state laws like Florida's and others being considered, the AGs say, "deliberately misleads financial institutions about these state laws, for example, by falsely suggesting that laws such as Florida’s HB 989 would prohibit financial institutions from considering whether a consumer is associated with designated terrorist groups. On the contrary, laws like HB 989 ensure that financial institutions focus on true risk-based factors and stay out of the business of forcing radical social policies."

In a statement released to CHQ, Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel and Senior Vice President of Corporate Engagement Jeremy Tedesco said:

No one should be denied access to basic financial services because of their political or religious beliefs. That’s why federal and state governments have already enacted numerous anti-discrimination laws for financial services. But we are seeing a rising trend in politicized de-banking. States like Florida and Tennessee have done the right thing by enacting legally sound protections that ensure their citizens are not de-banked based on their political or religious views. Sadly, the U.S. Department of Treasury is openly opposing these efforts—even going so far as to misrepresent the scope and reach of the laws. Rather than carrying the water for big banks that have a disturbing track record of de-banking customers for their political or religious views, the department should focus on addressing its own complicity in this discriminatory practice which was revealed by a congressional committee earlier this year. The federal government’s collusion with Big Banks to surveil customer’s private financial data is the real threat to our First Amendment freedoms.

FOX Business further reported that the Biden – Harris Treasury letter is the latest in "a troubling pattern" under the Biden-Harris administration of "importing political activism into financial regulation."

"In 2021, you spoke in favor of the Financial Stability Oversight Council ‘recognizing that climate change is an emerging and increasing threat to U.S. financial stability.’ Yet the Federal Reserve’s own climate-scenario stress test shows that even the worst-case scenarios relating to global emissions and climate change do not create a material financial risk," they wrote.

"In September 2023, you also encouraged financial institutions to follow net zero recommendations that are promoted by the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero, which is chaired by political activist and mega-donor Michael Bloomberg," they continued.

"In sum, your recent actions show a disturbing trend of the Treasury Department skirting its responsibilities under the law to serve political ends," the AGs concluded, adding that they are "looking forward to the day when federal regulators will focus on their statutory duties, rather than on advancing radical political causes and stoking unfounded fear about state laws."

The Capitol Switchboard is (202-224-3121), we urge CHQ readers and friends to call your Representative and Senators, tell them you demand they use the power of the purse to stop Democrats at the Biden – Harris Department of the Treasury from “debanking” conservatives, religious organizations, gun manufacturers, and those engaged in fossil fuel exploration in pursuit of Far Left political goals.

• Republican Attorneys General

• Banking

• Political Views

• Iowa AG Brenna Bird

• Florida AG Ashley Moody

• viewpoint discrimination

• financial system

• national security

• protecting consumers from discrimination

• gun owners

• Florida HB 989

• religious beliefs

• politicized de-banking

• climate change