Congratulates Tennessean nominee Jonathan McKernan
WASHINGTON—United States Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN), a member of the Senate Banking Committee, today in a hearing extracted a commitment from Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) Chair Martin Gruenberg not to weaponize the FDIC to target industries to which the Biden Administration may be ideologically opposed, such as the oil-and-gas and firearms industries.
“Whether it’s Operation Choke Point, whether it’s the creation of new merchant category codes for firearm and ammunition purchases, whether it’s the de-banking of the oil-and-gas industry, our financial system is increasingly becoming politicized. It’s becoming weaponized to achieve partisan aims that certainly wouldn’t survive a vote here in the Senate. I’m concerned that this letter that you put forward may certainly be the FDIC simply testing the waters to see how other industries like this might be affected… that the Administration may be ideologically opposed to. […] I’d like to know if you can commit to me here today that the FDIC will not institute similar practices for the oil-and-gas industry, for example, or the firearms and ammunition industry, or any other politically-sensitive industry that might become a target of this Administration,” Hagerty asked.
Chair Gruenberg affirmed his commitment to Hagerty.
Hagerty also congratulated Tennessean Jonathan McKernan, nominee to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the FDIC. “I wanted to start by recognizing one of the nominees here today, Jonathan McKernan, a fellow Tennessean, someone who has wonderful credentials, both in the practice of private law and working in the public sector. Mr. McKernan, I’m delighted to see you here representing Tennessee so well. Congratulations on your nomination to this important position,” Hagerty said.
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