Ever since Republicans started figuring out there's a cost to their racist and baseless attacks on incorporating Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) issues in financial risk and value estimations and other fiduciary concerns, they've struggled to find messaging that lands.
For example, M. Scott Carter at the Oklahoman reported this week that the state's boycott of banks with ESG policies comes with a huge price tag—and buys them exactly nothing.
Oklahoma State Auditor and Inspector and pension board member Cindy Byrd told Carter she considered it "political manipulation with our tax dollars" when banks are too environmentally conscious and (supposedly) defunding fossil fuels, or are anti-racist by having diversity-encouraging hiring practices, or that engage in trainings on “ever-changing and confusing gender and race ideologies." According to Byrd, “Their goal is to make us money not dictate our policies.”
Oh? Is it really? If it's making money and not "political manipulation" then why the boycott? Because it turns out, that's been expensive! "The city of Stillwater complained in May," Carter reported, "that the state's investment firm blacklist, which barred using Bank of America for an infrastructure bond issue, would cost it more than $1 million in higher interest."
And for the state? "The Oklahoma Public Employees Association countered that divesting the pension system from BlackRock would cost the state about $10 million." And apparently eight figures is just the start, with the OPEA noting “the potential for even greater losses.”
State Treasurer Todd Russ is serving someone, and OPEA doesn't think it's the state's pensioners: “Why else would he be so rigid in these attacks that will ultimately hurt the citizens of Oklahoma?”
Carter, to his credit as a reporter, had already answered that question, disclosing in the Oklahoman that the Republican anti-ESG shenanigans were "driven by the State Financial Officers Foundation, a nonprofit based in Kansas that pushes anti-ESG legislation."
Oh! Turns out that big national disinfo-laden push to turn ESG into the next CRT has real-world costs when acted upon, and those costs are millions of lost dollars for red state retirement funds.
And make no mistake, it's disinfo through and through. Even the core complaint that big Wall Street financial companies are avoiding fossil fuels is a farce, as target BlackRock "has over $15 billion invested in Oklahoma public energy companies." And yes, some 90% of those investments are in oil and gas, so safe to say BlackRock's not topping our list of climate champs any time soon.
Oklahoma's boycott of a company that's not doing the thing they're boycotting over will cost its retirement funds upwards of ten million dollars.
Who knew owning the libs was so expensive! Too bad it's the state's retired teachers, firefighters, and police officers who have to pay.
