Biden Vetoes Bill Protecting Americans From Woke Investing

On Monday, President Biden exercised his veto power for the first time since taking office, blocking a bipartisan bill.

The bill aimed to overturn a regulation that allowed pension fund managers to consider environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) factors while investing retirement funds, a process known as “woke investing” or “woke capitalism.”

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) responded to the action taken by Biden saying, “President Biden’s first veto is against a bipartisan bill that protects retirement savings from political interference. It is clear that President Biden wants Wall Street to use your hard-earned money not to grow your savings but to fund a far-left political agenda. That will hurt seniors and workers, especially after President Biden’s reckless spending caused record inflation and rapid interest rate hikes.”

On March 1, the Democrat-controlled Senate passed the bill with a 50-46 vote, and the House version was approved on February 28 with support from every Republican and only one Democrat, Rep. Jared Golden (ME). As veto overrides necessitate a two-thirds majority in both chambers, the rule allowing for environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing is likely to remain in place.

“This Administration continues to prioritize their radical policy agenda over the economic, energy, and national security needs of our country, and it is absolutely infuriating,” said Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV). Only two Democratic senators supported the bill, Sen. Manchin and Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT).

Manchin further stated that the Biden administration was pursuing an “unrelenting campaign to advance a radical social and environmental agenda,” which will only worsen the economic issues already caused by the president’s disastrous policies.

Despite the bill’s bipartisan support, President Biden cited “MAGA House Republicans” as the reason for his decision to veto it. He singled out Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), who voted in favor of the bill.

“This bill would risk your retirement savings by making it illegal to consider risk factors MAGA House Republicans don’t like,” said Biden in a tweet on Monday.

“Your plan manager should be able to protect your hard-earned savings — whether Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene likes it or not.”

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene replied to the president’s remark about her in her own tweet on Monday saying, “No one has put our retirement at risk more than you, Joe. American families can’t count on checks from China to pay their rent and groceries like your family does.”