March 13, 2023
On the left, they're claiming President Trump triggered the meltdown of Silicon Valley Bank on Friday through signing off on deregulation. On the right, they're saying it was wokester priorities that drove the bank bust.
It's hard to square that circle with what's known about why the mess happened.
Yes, they were a wokester bank, but there are caveats, and I'll explain why that matters.
First, here's their wokesterly profile:
They spent $200,000 on lobbying Congress in 2022, hiring Franklin Square Group, which is full of Democrats, in their highest lobbying money total in their history. Through their PAC or as individuals, they donated almost exclusively to Democrats, with Sen. Mark Warner of Arizona taking the biggest pile, but usual suspects such as Reps. Carolyn Maloney and Gregory Meeks, and Sen. Chuck Schumer, also taking their cut.
They put out truly ignorant wokester statements calling non-green projects a matter of "systemic risk" in their "sustainable finance statement" (boldface added):
Guess they learned the hard way that climate wasn't their biggest risk
It's remarkably similar to what Janet Yellen mouthed in her nutty wokester logic about climate change being the biggest threat to the banking system back in 2021:
...and recently, too, from James Pinkerton at Breitbart News:
Among their thousands of loans to startup companies, they lent cash for "hundreds" of green tech financing loans, which included these priorities:
Wokester apocalypse at Silicon Valley Bank?
By Monica ShowalterOn the left, they're claiming President Trump triggered the meltdown of Silicon Valley Bank on Friday through signing off on deregulation. On the right, they're saying it was wokester priorities that drove the bank bust.
It's hard to square that circle with what's known about why the mess happened.
Yes, they were a wokester bank, but there are caveats, and I'll explain why that matters.
First, here's their wokesterly profile:
They spent $200,000 on lobbying Congress in 2022, hiring Franklin Square Group, which is full of Democrats, in their highest lobbying money total in their history. Through their PAC or as individuals, they donated almost exclusively to Democrats, with Sen. Mark Warner of Arizona taking the biggest pile, but usual suspects such as Reps. Carolyn Maloney and Gregory Meeks, and Sen. Chuck Schumer, also taking their cut.
They put out truly ignorant wokester statements calling non-green projects a matter of "systemic risk" in their "sustainable finance statement" (boldface added):
The innovation sector is essential to the transition to a sustainable, low carbon, net zero emissions economy. Supporting our clients that are building new sustainability solutions is the most effective way for SVB to tackle climate change, which presents a systemic risk to society, the financial system, our clients and our company. As the bank of the innovation economy, and in alignment with our mission to help our clients succeed and innovate for a better world, SVB has committed to provide at least $5 billion in loans, investments and other financing to support sustainability efforts by 2027.
Guess they learned the hard way that climate wasn't their biggest risk
It's remarkably similar to what Janet Yellen mouthed in her nutty wokester logic about climate change being the biggest threat to the banking system back in 2021:
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Wednesday called climate change “an existential threat” and the biggest emerging risk to the health of the U.S. financial system, pledging to marshal regulatory forces to guard against its harmful effects.
...and recently, too, from James Pinkerton at Breitbart News:
... as recently as March 7, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen was urging faster please on ESG. “A delayed and disorderly transition to a net-zero economy can lead to shocks to the financial system,” she said.
Among their thousands of loans to startup companies, they lent cash for "hundreds" of green tech financing loans, which included these priorities:
But with all those green concerns, they never did got around to appointing an actual head of risk assessment as defined in their corporate statement in the nine months before they went belly up. However, they had plenty of wokester gurus. The Daily Mail reported that they had a woke boss for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, who was busy organizing a month-long Pride campaign and a 'Lesbian Visibility Day.' (The New York Post has more on that, as well.) On hiring personnel, they had plenty of wokester priorities, too.Eligible Climate Tech and Sustainable solutions include projects, technologies and business models in the following sectors: • Circular economy • Climate resilience • Energy efficiency and demand management • Green buildings • Renewable energy, energy storage and grid infrastructure • Sustainable agriculture and alternative foods • Sustainable transportation • Technology solutions that mitigate greenhouse gas emissions • Waste management and pollution control • Water technology