May, 20 2020, 12:00am EDT
Rep Garcia, Sen Whitehouse, Indigenous and Community Leaders Call Out BlackRock on Climate Deception
Virtual People’s Assembly on eve of BlackRock AGM lays out case that BlackRock is not holding to its climate commitments.
WASHINGTON
Today, Congressman Jesus "Chuy" Garcia (D-IL), Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), NYC Comptroller Scott Stringer, and Indigenous and community leaders from the U.S., Brazil, and Liberia called out BlackRock for failing to keep its promises to center climate in its business model. Gathering online for a "People's Assembly" on the eve of the company's annual general meeting (AGM), speaker after speaker, many of whom have attended the AGM in person in previous years, pointed out ways in which BlackRock has fallen far short of the mark it set for itself in January and laid out priorities and questions BlackRock must address during its yearly shareholder meeting on Thursday.
"We know BlackRock understands the massive systemic risks climate change presents to our financial system. BlackRock is among the chorus of big investors, central banks, and top economists warning of dire financial consequences," said Senator Whitehouse. "BlackRock now needs to get serious about the fossil fuel companies in which it has a big ownership stake. Marathon Petroleum obstructs climate action, and BlackRock does nothing; Exxon provides bogus climate reports, and BlackRock does nothing. That lassitude has to stop."
Indigenous and community leaders spoke to the hundreds of attendees about rampant deforestation, land grabbing, pollution, and human rights violations happening in their communities, all propped up by BlackRock's investments.
"BlackRock is investing in companies that are actively causing environmental destruction, pollution, social conflicts, and human rights violations across Indonesia," said Bayu Herinata, Director of Education and Organizing with WALHI in Indonesia "We are calling on BlackRock to live up to its promises on climate and sustainability by ending its investments in companies that destroy the environment and violate human rights. If BlackRock cannot commit to taking responsibility and carrying out its obligations then we ask BlackRock to get out of Indonesia entirely."
Also among the speakers was Rachel Rivera from New York City who spoke about surviving Hurricane Sandy. She called on BlackRock to stop investing in the companies that are causing climate change impacts like hurricanes. Ali Kaba of the Sustainable Development Institute in Liberia talked about how consent from indigenous communities is absolutely necessary before any business activity can take place on their territory, and not go forward if they don't consent.
"BlackRock's nominal commitments to sustainability and human rights are completely antithetical to the billions of dollars it has invested in the industries currently destroying the Amazon rainforest and violating indigenous rights there," said Leila Salazar-Lopez, Executive Director of Amazon Watch. "If BlackRock is serious about 'fundamentally reshaping finance to deal with climate change', it needs to STOP FINANCING the fossil fuel and agribusiness industries most responsible for driving it."
Congressman Garcia and Senator Whitehouse were joined by New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer and Diana Best, Senior Strategist for the Sunrise Project, to discuss the long term implications of BlackRock gaining power and influence during the Covid-19 recovery, and solutions that BlackRock needs to implement to live up to its climate rhetoric.
"COVID-19 is a national tragedy, not an opportunity to consolidate corporate power and reward the wealthy. While my constituents struggle to pay rent and put food on the table, the Federal Reserve is enabling greedy corporations like BlackRock to make a profit off the backs of working families during this global health pandemic," said Congressman Jesus "Chuy" Garcia. "BlackRock was hired to help stabilize our economy, instead, the Fed's contract with the company allows it to further consolidate its own market power at the expense of families who are struggling to get by. The company claims to be a steward of our climate, but invests deeply in the fossil fuel industry. It's clear the Trump Administration is exploiting this pandemic to reward politically connected shadow banks, fossil fuel companies, and major campaign contributors and the public should be outraged."
The Sunrise Project grows social movements to drive the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy as fast as possible.
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Despite 100% Pentagon Audit Failure Rate, House Passes $883.7 Billion NDAA
"Instead of fighting the rising cost of healthcare, gas, or groceries, this Congress prioritized rewarding the wealthy and well-connected military-industrial complex," said Defense Spending Reduction Caucus co-chairs.
Dec 11, 2024
Despite the Pentagon's repeated failures to pass audits and various alarming policies, 81 Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives voted with 200 Republicans on Wednesday to advance a $883.7 billion annual defense package.
The Servicemember Quality of Life Improvement and National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2025, unveiled by congressional negotiators this past Saturday, still needs approval from the Senate, which is expected to vote next week. U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said Wednesday that he plans to vote no and spoke out against the military-industrial complex.
The push to pass the NDAA comes as this congressional session winds down and after the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) announced last month that it had failed yet another audit—which several lawmakers highlighted after the Wednesday vote.
Reps. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) and Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), co-chairs and co-founders of the Defense Spending Reduction Caucus, said in a joint statement, "Time and time again, Congress seems to be able to find the funds necessary to line the pockets of defense contractors while neglecting the problems everyday Americans face here at home."
"Instead of fighting the rising cost of healthcare, gas, or groceries, this Congress prioritized rewarding the wealthy and well-connected military-industrial complex with even more unaccountable funds," they continued. "After a seventh failed audit in a row, it's disappointing that our amendment to hold the Pentagon accountable by penalizing the DOD's budget by 0.5% for each failed audit was stripped out of the final bill. It's time Congress demanded accountability from the Pentagon."
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Several of the 124 House Democrats who voted against the NDAA cited those "culture war" policies, in addition to concerns about how the Pentagon spends massive amounts of money that could go toward improving lives across the country.
"Once again, Congress has passed a massive military authorization bill that prioritizes endless military spending over the critical needs of American families. This year's NDAA designates $900 billion for military spending," said Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), noting the audit failures. "While I recognize the long-overdue 14.5% raise for our lowest-ranking enlisted personnel is important, this bill remains flawed. The bloated military budget continues to take away crucial funding from programs that could help millions of Americans struggling to make ends meet."
Taking aim at the GOP's push to deny gender-affirming care through TRICARE, the congresswoman said that "I cannot support a bill that continues unnecessary military spending while also attacking the rights and healthcare of transgender youth, and for that reason, I voted NO."
As Omar, a leading critic of the U.S.-backed Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip, also pointed out: "The NDAA includes a provision that blocks the Pentagon from using data on casualties and deaths from the Gaza Ministry of Health or any sources relying on those statistics. This is an alarming erasure of the suffering of the Palestinian people, ignoring the human toll of ongoing violence."
Israel—which receives billions of dollars in annual armed aid from the United States—faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court last month issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. The NDAA includes over $627 million in provisions for Israel.
Congresswoman Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.), who voted against the NDAA, directed attention to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's proposed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), set to be run by billionaires Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy.
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Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), who also opposed the NDAA, wrote in a Tuesday opinion piece for MSNBC that he looks forward to working with DOGE "to reduce waste and fraud at the Pentagon, while strongly opposing any cuts to programs likeSocial Security, Medicare, the Department of Veterans Affairs, or the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau."
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The congressman, who is expected to run for president in 2028, concluded that "American taxpayers want and deserve the best return on their investment. Let's put politics aside and work with DOGE to reduce wasteful defense spending. And let's invest instead in domestic manufacturing, good-paying jobs, and a modern national security strategy."
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The veto by the United States, a permanent Security Council member, came during an emergency special session and was the lone dissenting vote on the 15-member body. It was the fourth time since October 2023 that the Biden administration vetoed a Security Council resolution on a Gaza cease-fire.
"At a time when Hamas is feeling isolated due to the cease-fire in Lebanon, the draft resolution on a cease-fire in Gaza risks sending a dangerous message to Hamas that there's no need to negotiate or release the hostages," Robert Wood, the United States' deputy U.N. ambassador, said ahead of Wednesday's vote.
The 193-member U.N. General Assembly (UNGA) subsequently voted 158-9, with 13 abstentions, for a resolution demanding "an immediate, unconditional, and permanent ceasefire, to be respected by all parties," and calling for the "immediate and unconditional release of all hostages" held by Hamas.
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Nine UNGA members opposed the measure, while 11 others abstained. Security Council resolutions are legally binding, while General Assembly resolutions are not, and are also not subject to vetoes.
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toldThe Associated Press.
Since the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel, at least 162,000 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed, maimed, or left missing by Israel's bombardment, invasion, and siege of the coastal enclave, according to officials there. More than 2 million others have been forcibly displaced, starved, or sickened by Israel's onslaught.
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Aiming to confront "a root cause of many of America's fundamental economic problems," U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Wednesday unveiled a bill to require corporations to balance growth with fair treatment of their employees and consumers.
The Massachusetts Democrat introduced the Accountable Capitalism Act, explaining that for much of U.S. history, corporations reinvested more than half of their profits back into their companies, working in the interest of employees, customers, business partners, and shareholders.
In the 1980s, said Warren corporations began placing the latter group above all, adopting "the belief that their only legitimate and legal purpose was 'maximizing shareholder value.'"
That view was further cemented in 1997 when the Business Roundtable, a lobbying group that represents chief executives across the country, declared that the "principal objective of a business enterprise is to generate economic returns to its owners."
Now, Warren said in a policy document, "around 93% of American-held corporate shares are owned by just 10% of our nation's richest households, while more than 40% of American households hold no shares at all."
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The Accountable Capitalism Act would require:
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