Posted on Feb 10, 2024
Team Biden Told Banks to Surveil Republicans
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As part of its J6 investigation, the administration’s financial crimes network flagged terms such as Cabela’s and Dick’s Sporting Goods, and even purchases of religious books.
Team Biden Told Banks to Surveil Republicans
Posted from patriotpost.us
Joe Biden
Banking
Republicans
Edited 2 y ago
Posted 2 y ago
Responses: 4
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Under The Obama Administration:
" According to the FDIC, these businesses include: . . . firearms sales,
"Operation Choke Point was created by the Justice Department to “choke out” companies the administration considers a “high risk” or otherwise objectionable, despite the fact that they are legal businesses. The goal of the initiative is to deny these merchants access to the banking and payments networks that every business needs to survive.
Source: The Department of Justice’s “Operation Choke Point”: Illegally Choking Off Legitimate Businesses? Staff Report. 113th Congress May 29, 2014
The Department is aware of these impacts, and has dismissed them. Internal memoranda on Operation Choke Point acknowledge the program’s impact on legitimate merchants. Senior officials informed Attorney General Eric Holder that as a consequence of Operation Choke Point, banks are exiting entire lines of business deemed “high risk” by the government.
Source: The Department of Justice’s “Operation Choke Point”: Illegally Choking Off Legitimate Businesses? Staff Report. 113th Congress May 29, 2014
The Department lacks adequate legal authority for the initiative. Operation Choke Point is being executed through subpoenas issued under Section 951 of the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989. The intent of Section 951 was to give the Department the tools to pursue civil penalties against entities that commit fraud against banks, not private companies doing legal business. Documents produced to the Committee demonstrate the Department has radically and
unjustifiably expanded its Section 951 authority.
Source: The Department of Justice’s “Operation Choke Point”: Illegally Choking Off Legitimate Businesses? Staff Report. 113th Congress May 29, 2014
"Operation Choke Point threatens countless legal businesses well outside of consumer finance. The Department’s radical reinterpretation of its authority under FIRREA, in conjunction with recent policy announcements by bank examiners, is compelling banks to terminate longstanding lending and depository relationships with a wide array of lawful businesses and individuals. According to the FDIC, these businesses include: ...online tobacco [and] firearms sales Source: The Department of Justice’s “Operation Choke Point”: Illegally Choking Off Legitimate Businesses? Staff Report. 113th Congress May 29, 2014
"According to the FDIC, these businesses include: ... firearms sales,..."
“Operation Choke Point”: Illegally Choking Off Legitimate Businesses? Staff Report. 113th Congress May 29, 2014
The Department’s radical reinterpretation of what constitutes an actionable violation under § 951 of FIRREA fundamentally distorts Congress’ intent in enacting the law, and inappropriately demands that
bankers act as the moral arbiters and policemen of the commercial world. In light of the Department’s obligation to act within the bounds of the law, and its avowed commitment not to “discourage or inhibit” the lawful conduct of honest merchants, it is necessary to disavow and dismantle Operation Choke Point.
http://oversight.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Staff-Report-Operation-Choke-Point1.pdf
" According to the FDIC, these businesses include: . . . firearms sales,
"Operation Choke Point was created by the Justice Department to “choke out” companies the administration considers a “high risk” or otherwise objectionable, despite the fact that they are legal businesses. The goal of the initiative is to deny these merchants access to the banking and payments networks that every business needs to survive.
Source: The Department of Justice’s “Operation Choke Point”: Illegally Choking Off Legitimate Businesses? Staff Report. 113th Congress May 29, 2014
The Department is aware of these impacts, and has dismissed them. Internal memoranda on Operation Choke Point acknowledge the program’s impact on legitimate merchants. Senior officials informed Attorney General Eric Holder that as a consequence of Operation Choke Point, banks are exiting entire lines of business deemed “high risk” by the government.
Source: The Department of Justice’s “Operation Choke Point”: Illegally Choking Off Legitimate Businesses? Staff Report. 113th Congress May 29, 2014
The Department lacks adequate legal authority for the initiative. Operation Choke Point is being executed through subpoenas issued under Section 951 of the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989. The intent of Section 951 was to give the Department the tools to pursue civil penalties against entities that commit fraud against banks, not private companies doing legal business. Documents produced to the Committee demonstrate the Department has radically and
unjustifiably expanded its Section 951 authority.
Source: The Department of Justice’s “Operation Choke Point”: Illegally Choking Off Legitimate Businesses? Staff Report. 113th Congress May 29, 2014
"Operation Choke Point threatens countless legal businesses well outside of consumer finance. The Department’s radical reinterpretation of its authority under FIRREA, in conjunction with recent policy announcements by bank examiners, is compelling banks to terminate longstanding lending and depository relationships with a wide array of lawful businesses and individuals. According to the FDIC, these businesses include: ...online tobacco [and] firearms sales Source: The Department of Justice’s “Operation Choke Point”: Illegally Choking Off Legitimate Businesses? Staff Report. 113th Congress May 29, 2014
"According to the FDIC, these businesses include: ... firearms sales,..."
“Operation Choke Point”: Illegally Choking Off Legitimate Businesses? Staff Report. 113th Congress May 29, 2014
The Department’s radical reinterpretation of what constitutes an actionable violation under § 951 of FIRREA fundamentally distorts Congress’ intent in enacting the law, and inappropriately demands that
bankers act as the moral arbiters and policemen of the commercial world. In light of the Department’s obligation to act within the bounds of the law, and its avowed commitment not to “discourage or inhibit” the lawful conduct of honest merchants, it is necessary to disavow and dismantle Operation Choke Point.
http://oversight.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Staff-Report-Operation-Choke-Point1.pdf
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Under The Obama Administration:
"Consequently, banks should endeavor not only to know their customers, but also to know their customers’ customers. Before they agree to do business with a third-party payment processor, banks should strive to learn more about the processors’ merchant-clients, including the names of the principals, the location of the business, and the products being sold, among other things."
Source: Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force Executive Director Michael J. Bresnickat the Exchequer Club of Washington, D.C.
"It comes down to this: When a bank allows its customers, and even its customers’ customers, access to the national banking system, it should endeavor to understand the true nature of the business that it will allow to access the payment system, and the risks posed to consumers and society regarding criminal or other unlawful conduct."
Source: Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force Executive Director Michael J. Bresnickat the Exchequer Club of Washington, D.C.
https://www.justice.gov/opa/speech/financial-fraud-enforcement-task-force-executive-director-michael-j-bresnick-exchequer
"Consequently, banks should endeavor not only to know their customers, but also to know their customers’ customers. Before they agree to do business with a third-party payment processor, banks should strive to learn more about the processors’ merchant-clients, including the names of the principals, the location of the business, and the products being sold, among other things."
Source: Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force Executive Director Michael J. Bresnickat the Exchequer Club of Washington, D.C.
"It comes down to this: When a bank allows its customers, and even its customers’ customers, access to the national banking system, it should endeavor to understand the true nature of the business that it will allow to access the payment system, and the risks posed to consumers and society regarding criminal or other unlawful conduct."
Source: Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force Executive Director Michael J. Bresnickat the Exchequer Club of Washington, D.C.
https://www.justice.gov/opa/speech/financial-fraud-enforcement-task-force-executive-director-michael-j-bresnick-exchequer
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Maj Robert Thornton
I have no issue with the bank checking the legitimacy of a business. I do, however, have a problem with banks reporting to the government what I purchase.
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Maj John Bell
Maj Robert Thornton - The banks, at the direction of the DOJ, FDIC and OCC did far more than check the legitimacy of businesses. They denied banking services to entire classes of legitimate business operating within the law. The justification was no more than the businesses were in disfavor of the administration: Firearms dealers (including sporting goods stores which sold firearms or ammunition), Tobacco stores, fireworks dealers.
Under their understanding of the FDIC and OCC guidance and interactions with DOJ officials, banks also closed private accounts of people who had businesses accounts or income sources that were within the "disfavored" categories. There was no investigation or due diligence by the banks. "Your industry is on the list. Our doors are closed to you."
It is not the place of banks to become enforcement arms of the government. This was far beyond the intent of Congress. It was a case of the Obama administration weaponizing the bureaucracy. The Biden administration and many democrat state governors are continuing the practice.
After losing a request for summary dismissal of the plaintiff's lawsuit, the Obama administration shutdown "operation Chokepoint," and the FDIC and OCC rescinded their lists of "high risk" businesses. And the public went largely unaware of what was being done.
I think it is akin to "You shouldn't be afraid of illegal search and seizure, if you're not doing something wrong." If we have to play by the rules, so should government.
Under their understanding of the FDIC and OCC guidance and interactions with DOJ officials, banks also closed private accounts of people who had businesses accounts or income sources that were within the "disfavored" categories. There was no investigation or due diligence by the banks. "Your industry is on the list. Our doors are closed to you."
It is not the place of banks to become enforcement arms of the government. This was far beyond the intent of Congress. It was a case of the Obama administration weaponizing the bureaucracy. The Biden administration and many democrat state governors are continuing the practice.
After losing a request for summary dismissal of the plaintiff's lawsuit, the Obama administration shutdown "operation Chokepoint," and the FDIC and OCC rescinded their lists of "high risk" businesses. And the public went largely unaware of what was being done.
I think it is akin to "You shouldn't be afraid of illegal search and seizure, if you're not doing something wrong." If we have to play by the rules, so should government.
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Lt Col Charlie Brown
Thank you Maj John Bell for all the material and links you added which support the contention that this was illegal and cherry picking by two administrations to stop legimitate businesses from selling their products and services to citizens of this country.
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