Advancing American Freedom, the organization led by Vice President Mike Pence, today
announced a six-figure ad campaign in Arizona and Montana calling for support on the resolution introduced by Senator Mike Braun and Representative Andy Barr. The resolution would rollback the Biden administration’s ability to regulate how Americans’ retirement accounts are managed with respect to environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) investing goals.
Advancing American Freedom also recently led a coalition letter, co-signed with over 100 conservative leaders and officials, calling on members to support the resolution.
The letter said in part:
A pernicious practice known as Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) investing has emerged over the past several decades. Rather than prioritize the financial well-being and stability of retirees, ESG seeks to advance ideological goals related to environmental policy and other divisive subjects. While it is a tenet of a free society that people ought to be able to use their own money as they see fit (including advancing their own particular priorities), ESG is a misappropriation of retirees’ savings by money managers for their own political agendas. Most Americans think it’s a bad idea for companies to use their financial influence to advance a political or social agenda, as is the case in ESG investing.1
Forcing Americans into ESG investment is not only politically inappropriate, it is also financially irresponsible. According to research from the University of Chicago, mutual funds scoring highly on ESG factors are constantly outperformed by funds rated lowest for ESG.2 Moreover, 85 percent of the country does not even know what “ESG” is, and therefore would not be aware of the financial risks their retirement account managers are subjecting them to when they actively pursue ESG investment decisions.3
Under the Trump-Pence administration, the U.S. government protected retirees from this kind of abuse by issuing a rule clarifying that, under ERISA, the managers of retirement funds could not engage in ESG investment if it would have a negative impact on retiree’s savings or expose them to additional risks (“Financial Factors in Selecting Plan Investments”).
Tragically, on November 22, 2022, the Biden administration chose to undermine the Trump-Pence safeguards by issuing their own ERISA rule that would make it easier for retirement fund managers to imperil retirees’ savings. With 22 percent of Americans set to be relying upon their retirement savings and benefits in 2050, this policy of misappropriation cannot be allowed to stand.
In April of 2022, Vice President Pence delivered remarks at Rice University, calling out those who sought to weaponize the U.S. financial system to “destroy energy producers from within.”
Vice President Pence has since written two nationally-syndicated pieces in RealClearMarkets and the Wall Street Journal calling for conservatives to take up the mantle against the Radical Left’s ESG agenda.
Advancing American Freedom launched the two new digital ads in Arizona and Montana urging voters to contact Senators Sinema and Tester and demand they vote yes on the Braun/Barr Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution that seeks to protect Americans’ retirement accounts. This resolution would roll back the Biden administration’s authority to impose ESG rules on how Americans’ retirement accounts are managed.
This six-figure digital spend will run for the next week in the lead up to the vote on the CRA, which will take place between Tuesday and Thursday of next week. Each ad is projected to generate roughly one-million impressions per state, educating constituents on the harmful impacts of the Biden administration’s ESG rulemaking and amplifying our call to action ahead of movement in Senate next week.
The Capitol Switchboard is (202) 224-3121 we urge CHQ readers and friends to call their Senators and Representative, tell them you want prompt congressional action on the Braun – Barr Joint Resolution blocking Biden’s rule allowing the ideological embezzling of Americans’ retirement accounts.
Advancing American Freedom (AAF)
Mike Pence
Freedom Agenda
economic opportunity
American strength and leadership on the world stage
American culture
Three pillars: American Opportunity, American Leadership, and American Culture
Biden Justice Department
FBI raid Mar-a-Lago
Merrick Garland
Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA)
Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG)
Congressional Review Act (CRA)
Senator Mike Braun
Representative Andy Barr