Politics

Dem Rep Calls Republicans Anti-Capitalist Trotskyites For Opposing Woke Investing Mandates

No featured image available

Democratic Rep. Brad Sherman of California asserted Wednesday that Republican opposition to environmental, social and governance (ESG) investment mandates aligns with the mission of Leon Trotsky and his following of international socialists.

Sherman made the comparison during Wednesday’s House Financial Services Committee hearing, titled “Protecting Investor Interests: Examining Environmental and Social Policy in Financial Regulation.” Sherman asserted that Republican opposition to pro-ESG investments continues the anti-capitalist mission of Trotsky and his followers in the Socialist Workers Party.

“Shareholders should be in control, not managers who don’t own the company. And shareholders should be able to get the investment advice they want, even if it’s advice on how to improve the world rather than earnings per share,” Sherman said. “For over 100 years, the followers of Leon Trotsky in the Socialist Workers Party have waged war against this capitalist model. Today, elements of the Republican Party join them in that effort.”

Numerous congressional Republicans have targeted pro-ESG investment initiatives, asserting that they are a “scam” which inject unnecessary, uneconomic and politicized considerations into corporate operations. American pension funds, insurance companies, university endowments, philanthropic foundations and other large institutional investors are invested in ESG funds, according to The Associated Press.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has promulgated regulatory changes that facilitate incorporation of politically-motivated proposals in proxy statements and rolling back reforms to rules for proxy solicitation, according to the hearing’s memorandum.

On the state level, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis organized a coalition of 18 state governors to combat pro-ESG investment policies in March. U.S. ESG funds generally underperformed relative to the overall U.S. stock market in 2022, according to Barron’s.

Leon Trotsky was a devout communist agitator who played a leading role in overthrowing the Russian empire and installed the Soviet Union’s totalitarian communist system, according to Encyclopedia Britannica.

Sherman has received a 97% lifetime approval score from the green activism group League of Conservation voters, according to its website. Sierra Club, another green activism group, has also given Sherman similar approval scores over the course of his congressional career, according to his website.

Sherman’s office did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.