Why Are American Taxpayers Financing an Aquarium in Brazil? A rendering of the Acquario Aquarium in Fortaleza, Brazil (Ex-Im Release) Brazilians still embarrassed by their team’s stunning loss to Germany in the World Cup will soon be able to seek refuge in this “spectacular aquarium on the beach in Fortaleza,” in the words of Export-Import Bank Chairman Fred Hochberg. American taxpayers will be financing the project through a direct loan approved by the Export-Import Bank to the Brazilian state of Ceará. Two questions come to mind: 1. Will the aquarium be the home for the next psychic octopus... Read More »
e·gre·gious -- outstandingly bad; shocking It pays to have cronies in high places, especially at the Export-Import Bank it seems. The Ex-Im Bank gave millions in taxpayer-backed loans for Spanish green energy company Abengoa International – while former Gov. Bill Richardson (D-NM) sat on the advisory boards for both. Here are the deal details: Richardson joined Ex-Im’s advisory board near the end of 2012, around the same time that two Ex-Im Bank loans benefitting Abengoa were issued. Those taxpayer-backed loans totaled around $150 million. As one newspaper noted, “critics say Richardson’s hol... Read More »
Inaccuracy #1: “When the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau opened in 2011, the best available government office space large enough to accommodate its thousand-plus employees was a run-down concrete building on G Street near the White House that once housed the now-defunct Office of Thrift Supervision.” Facts: The House Financial Services Committee has investigated whether 1700 G Street was in fact the “best available” office space for the CFPB at the time the Bureau opened. Earlier this year, the Committee requested that the CFPB produce “copies of all documents prepared by the Bureau,... Read More »
Americans are increasingly alarmed about Russia’s nationalism and military aggression (just look at this week’s Pew Research poll), but the Export-Import Bank doesn’t seem to care. In fact, Ex-Im’s financing of Russian projects jumped 177% during Fiscal Year 2013 to a record $580 million. (Ex-Im Bank 2013 Annual Report) Hardworking Americans taxpayers should be asking why they’re on the hook for Russian oil projects funneled to Vladimir Putin’s cronies while they’re struggling to pay for higher gas prices here at home and NATO issues warnings of further Russian aggression. Here are the deal de... Read More »
Hardworking American taxpayers, who are paying more for gas (“Gasoline prices at six-year high – AAA”) and “more for almost everything this year” (CNBC), might be wondering why President Obama refuses to approve the Keystone Pipeline but is using their tax dollars to finance foreign corporate welfare -- like the nearly $5 billion in direct loans to help build a venture developed by Saudi Aramco, Saudi Arabia’s state-owned oil company. This is the same Saudi Aramco, by the way, that one report this week said is “pulling the rug out from under the U.S. gas industry” and has announced plans to s... Read More »
Committee Seeks Accountability and Transparency at the Federal Reserve On Thursday, the Financial Services Committee held a hearing to examine H.R. 5018, the Federal Reserve Accountability and Transparency Act. The proposal is the first piece of legislation to arise from the Committee’s Federal Reserve Centennial Oversight Project. "We do not suggest for a moment that Congress, much less the White House or Treasury, should conduct monetary policy operations. We continue to respect the Federal Reserve’s independence in monetary policy. But that independence and discretion must be paired with ap... Read More »
The House is in session Tuesday through Friday this week. On Thursday at 10:00 a.m. the full committee will hold a hearing on legislation to reform the Federal Reserve on its 100-year anniversary. Be sure to check back here on the Bottom Line Blog -- and sign up for our email updates -- for additional information throughout the week. Read More »
1. The Ex-Im Bank doesn’t create jobs. Government export finance assistance programs like Ex-Im “largely shift production among sectors within the economy rather than raise the overall level of employment in the economy.” - Government Accountability Office, “Export-Import Bank: Key Factors in Considering Ex-Im Bank Reauthorization” “[A]t best the Ex-Im Bank creates jobs in export industries by destroying jobs in non-export industries.” – Donald Bodreaux, Ph.D, Professor of Economics at George Mason University “By some estimates, the Bank’s loan guarantees have resulted in up to 7,500 lost U.S.... Read More »
WASHINGTON -- The House Financial Services Committee on Wednesday held an in-depth, day-long hearing focused on the Export-Import Bank. The Washington Post - Fred Hochberg, chairman of the “embattled” Export-Import Bank, “refused to answer repeated questions” about whether he was aware of a criminal investigation being conducted into bank officials who are accused of corruption and taking kickbacks. The allegations “turned a harsher light on the agency – and fueled the arguments of the bank’s long-standing critics.” The Daily Caller - There is “a history of reforms being ignored” at the Bank. ... Read More »
In the News | The Committee on Financial Services Committee Seeks Openness and Transparency at FSOC On Tuesday, the full committee held an oversight hearing with Treasury Secretary Lew on the activities of the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC). Under questioning from Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-TX), Secretary Lew admitted that he could not say the Dodd-Frank Act ended "Too Big to Fail" as Democrats promised. "Can you tell this committee today with an honest, straight face that we have ended 'Too Big to Fail'?" Chairman Hensarling asked. "I'm not sure we'll know the answer to that qu... Read More »
