{"id":1772027,"date":"2022-12-12T06:02:27","date_gmt":"2022-12-12T11:02:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1772027"},"modified":"2022-12-12T08:03:48","modified_gmt":"2022-12-12T13:03:48","slug":"house-republicans-warn-esg-policies-may-violate-antitrust-laws","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/house-republicans-warn-esg-policies-may-violate-antitrust-laws\/","title":{"rendered":"House Republicans Warn ESG Policies May Violate Antitrust Laws"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fhouse-republicans-warn-esg-policies-may-violate-antitrust-laws%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1772027&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Six Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee have launched an investigation looking into whether major climate groups are violating federal antitrust laws in their effort to push the \u201cenvironmental, social, and governance\u201d (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/t-esg\">ESG<\/a>) agenda.<\/p>\n<p>Their concerns were raised in a <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/JudiciaryGOP\/status\/1600226890245029888\">letter<\/a> dated Dec. 6 to two executives on the steering committee for investor group Climate Action 100+ in which the Republicans argued that ESG, at its core, was \u201cmerely partisan politics masquerading as responsible corporate governance.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The ESG agenda has now included \u201cstifling investment in oil and gas,\u201d gun control, abortion access, and \u201cfake news dissemination,\u201d according to the letter.<\/p>\n<p>The lawmakers likened the climate action investor group to a \u201ccartel,\u201d whose job is to \u201censure the world\u2019s largest corporate greenhouse gas emitters take necessary action on climate change,\u201d quoting from the group\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.climateaction100.org\/\">website<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2>\u2018Woke Corporations\u2019<\/h2>\n<p>\u201cWoke corporations are collectively adopting and imposing progressive policy goals that American consumers do not want or do not need. An individual company\u2019s use of corporate resources for progressive aims might violate fiduciary duties or other laws, harming its viability and alienating consumers,\u201d the lawmakers wrote.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut when companies agree to work together to punish disfavored views or industries, or to otherwise advance environmental, social, and governance (ESG) goals, this coordinated behavior may violate the antitrust laws and harm American consumers.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The letter was signed by Reps. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/t-jim-jordan\">Jim Jordan<\/a> (R-Ohio), Dan Bishop (R-N.C.), <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/t-matt-gaetz\">Matt Gaetz<\/a> (R-Fla.), Tom McClintock (R-Calif.), Scott Fitzgerald (R-Wis.), and Cliff Bentz (R-Ore.). Jordan, currently the ranking Republican member of the House Judiciary Committee, <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/GOPLeader\/status\/1600953240203366400\">will be<\/a> the committee\u2019s chairperson in the Republican-led House in January.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCorporate America\u2019s collusion in pursuit of ESG goals may violate federal or state antitrust laws,\u201d the lawmakers wrote, pointing out how antitrust law is usually \u201cskeptical of cooperation among competitors.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen enterprises like Climate Action 100+ or Ceres invite or facilitate collusion to achieve progressive policy goals, that activity can aid anticompetitive and unlawful agreements and behavior.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ceres is a nonprofit organization and a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ceres.org\/climate\/climate-action-100\">co-founder<\/a> of Climate Action 100+.<\/p>\n<h2>\u2018Textbook Antitrust Violation\u2019<\/h2>\n<p>The letter cited an <a href=\"https:\/\/archive.vn\/x56Bg\">op-ed<\/a> written by Sean Fieler, president of New York-based investment firm Equinox Partners. The Wall Street Journal published the op-ed, \u201cThe ESG Movement Is a Ripe Target for Antitrust Action,\u201d in June.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAdvancing the ESG agenda requires that the owners of capital collude to restrict the supply of certain goods and services. Regardless of the colluding parties\u2019 motivations, this is a textbook antitrust violation,\u201d Fieler wrote.<\/p>\n<p>The letter was addressed to Mindy Lubber, CEO of Ceres, and Simiso Nzima, managing investment director of global equity at the California Public Employees\u2019 Retirement System.<\/p>\n<p>The Republicans want the two executives to turn over all documents from Dec. 1, 2016, to the present showing how the organization has played its role in \u201cfacilitating and coordinating companies\u2019 efforts to achieve ESG-related goals.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAll documents and communications referring or relating to any efforts by Climate Action 100+ \u2026 or Ceres to obtain or solicit agreements, commitments, or other types of participation from any investors, members, or other companies, including but not limited to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/t-blackrock\">BlackRock<\/a>, State Street, or Vanguard, to advance ESG-related goals,\u201d one of the several questions listed in the letter reads.<\/p>\n<p>The deadline for the two executives to submit the requested documents is Dec. 20. The letter also asks that further records and materials on this topic must be preserved.<\/p>\n<h2>Divestment<\/h2>\n<p>Recently, some states <a href=\"https:\/\/www.oilandgas360.com\/republicans-withdraw-1-billion-from-blackrock-due-to-its-esg-policies\/\">have decided<\/a> to divest funds from BlackRock over its ESG investment policies.<\/p>\n<p>For example, in October, Louisiana state Treasurer John M. Schroder announced that the Pelican State will divest $794 million out of BlackRock\u2019s funds by the end of the year over the asset management\u2019s push to embrace ESG investment strategies.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis divestment is necessary to protect Louisiana from mandates BlackRock has called for that would cripple our critical energy sector,\u201d Schroder said, according to a statement (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.treasury.la.gov\/_files\/ugd\/a4de8b_5b2d2f143071455597e123cfd27ed497.pdf?fbclid=IwAR3FC6gOWrtoZF-DVZwP9bc9209yAm_vm_SZjxFFdF8LHsd0w6NsIOqN8sM\">pdf<\/a>). \u201cESG investing violates Louisiana law on the fiduciary duties which require a sole focus on financial returns for the beneficiaries of state funds.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>On Dec. 1, Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis <a href=\"https:\/\/www.myfloridacfo.com\/news\/pressreleases\/details\/2022\/12\/01\/cfo-jimmy-patronis-florida-treasury-divesting-from-blackrock\">announced<\/a> that the state will begin divesting $2 billion worth of assets managed by BlackRock over the firm\u2019s ESG policies.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFlorida\u2019s Treasury Division is divesting from BlackRock because they have openly stated they\u2019ve got other goals than producing returns,\u201d Patronis said according to a statement. \u201cI think it\u2019s undemocratic of major asset managers to use their power to influence societal outcomes.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"author_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"one_author_block round\">\n<div class=\"top_row\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/author-frank-fang\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/16012286f4bb1eaf_ttl7dayTVf_WEB_FrankFang1.jpg\" alt=\"Frank Fang\"   style=\"display:none\"><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"names\">\n<p>journalist<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Follow<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Frank Fang is a Taiwan-based journalist. He covers US, China, and Taiwan news. He holds a master&#8217;s degree in materials science from Tsinghua University in Taiwan.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Six Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee have launched an investigation looking into whether major climate groups are violating federal antitrust laws in their effort to push the \u201cenvironmental, social,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1703929,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[547],"tags":[5509,5458,7003,3653,7750,4600,3819,3756,7855,3968],"class_list":["post-1772027","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-bongino-report","tag-antitrust","tag-bongino","tag-esg","tag-house","tag-laws","tag-policies","tag-report","tag-republicans","tag-violate","tag-warn"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1772027","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1772027"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1772027\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1703929"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1772027"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1772027"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1772027"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}