Political Quotes

“I rise today in joining my other colleagues, organized by my friend the Senator from Hawaii, to ask my colleagues to vote against the resolution, which I think we will be taking up literally in the next 10 minutes, which would strip away a commonsense Department of Labor rule that simply provides fiduciaries-- remember who we are talking about: fiduciaries, people who are responsible, under ERISA plans, to think about their beneficiaries over the long term. We are trying to make sure that those fiduciaries who are charged with maintaining retirement plans have the ability to adequately account for environmental, social, and governance factors. I know some of my colleagues have come on the floor and said this is an attempt by the Department of Labor to somehow mandate the retirement investments of hard-working Americans. Nothing could be further from the truth. The truth is, we look at profit and loss, we look at cash reserves, and we look at financial accounting. But the idea that environmental, social, and governance factors can't even be looked at is an interference in the business cycle that really kind of goes beyond the pale. I am often regarded--I have to acknowledge this--in my caucus as sometimes being a Member who has the most experience with capitalism, the most experience with business. I absolutely believe in our system. There is nothing better.…”