Disclaimer: This article may contain the personal views and opinions of the author.
Watching Rashida Tlaib is not for the faint of heart. When listing to the Congresswoman from Michigan, she makes AOC sound like a Helen Blanchard.
CEOs from some of the biggest banks in the country appeared in front of The Financial Services Committee. It was a show hearing. It has even been titled “Holding Megabanks Accountable.” Of course, when you hear the word “accountable,” the talk about Climate change is around the corner.
Tlaib’s end goal was clear, and that was to slide into the Green New Deal. She doesn’t want banks to finance fossil fuel ventures. She wants them to promise that they won’t fund something that is legal and will generate profit for them. The whole thing was a complete mess.
For starters, Tlaib goes about it and is upfront with only wanting yes or no responses. A majority of the time, she doesn’t single anyone out. Most of the CEOs wait it out to see who will answer first, then the rest follow in lockstep with a similar answer. Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, was no exception. He does eventually grow a few stones, but most of the hearing was watching adults pretending to have constructive dialogue.
Tlaib asks:
“You have all committed, as you all know, to transition the emissions from lending and investment activities to align with pathways to net-zero in 2050. Do you know what the international energy agency has said is required to meet our global 2050 net zero targets of limiting global temperature rise to 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit or 1.5 degrees Celsius? So no new fossil fuel production, starting today, so that’s like zero. I would like to ask all of you and go down the list, cause again, you all have agreed to doing this. Please answer with a simple yes or no. Does your bank have a policy against funding new oil and gas products, Mr. Dimon?”
Jamie Dimon’s response was:
“Absolutely not, and that would be the road to hell for America.”
Tlaib was clearly not happy and stressed out because, for once, someone told her to her face that she was an idiot. She even had her hand over her heart each time she spoke to him. She smiles because she thinks what she says in response is a witty rebuttal. It wasn’t, and her last jab at him about not caring about the working class was also not funny.
Bruce Pearl, the coach for the Auburn Tigers basketball team, has been around the block criticizing the Biden administration over Iran and how progressives ignore the women in Iran.
He took a break from the topic of Iran and tweeted about the Congresswoman from Michigan. He tweeted:
“Like Gas Prices aren’t high enough? Is the Congresswoman from Michigan not at all concerned with how much it’s going to cost people to stay warm this winter? Let’s just let Russia and Iran take care of our fossil fuel needs?!A weaker USA is dangerous for the world!”
“Holding Megabanks Accountable” is political theater to boost Democrats and nothing more. The Democrats, mainly people like the Squad, think they have won. They believe beating us over the head by calling us racist, fascist, and so on will make “privileged white people” feel guilty and scared to speak up. Tlaib was shocked that an “old white man” would speak to her that way.
For the most part, they’re right. Take the exchange between Don Lemmon and Hilary Fordwich, for instance.
He thought he had her, but she cleverly turned it around on him. It is one of those rare moments of watching someone’s face turn pale white. You can see in Don Lemmon’s eyes that he was internally freaking out, which was hilarious.
People need to take notes and start fighting back. Is it risky? Yes, but the ideas that America was founded on are worth it. Will it be hard? Yes, nothing in life that is easy. It will be challenging, and it will feel isolating at times. Our Founding Fathers took a risk and won. They gave us a republic; we will lose it if we don’t fight to keep it.
