Watch Kennedy’s remarks here.  

WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Banking Committee, today questioned Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) Chair nominee Christy Goldsmith Romero about Cleary Gottlieb Steen and Hamilton LLP’s report on the hundreds of claims of harassment at the FDIC.

Kennedy’s full exchange with Romero is below.

Kennedy: “I know you've read the Cleary Gottlieb report. Is that correct?”

Romero: “Yes, Senator.”

Kennedy: “I've watched a lot of powerful people in this town try to cover it up. They said, ‘Oh, it's bad, but don't worry: The FDIC chairman will fix it.’ It was—this was—the same FDIC chairman who had been at the agency since God was a corporal, and under whom all this stuff happened. And, fortunately, that point of view didn't prevail. 

“Here's the way I read the report: 97 people at that agency reported 145 separate incidents of sexual assaults. 91 others reported 141 separate incidents of gender- or sexuality-based discrimination. 187 people reported 320 separate incidents of verbal abuse. Over 500 people . . . came forward about discrimination, harassment, mistreatment they faced at the FDIC.

“Now, I listened to you say all the right words, and you talked about accountability, and you talked about refurbishing the tarnished reputation of the agency, and you talked about listening. And I appreciate all that, but the phrase that got my attention was, ‘send a clear message that this won't be tolerated.’

“If you want to do that, what you need to do before you do your listening tours or all that other stuff, you need to investigate every one of these allegations—every single one—and find out if they're true. And, if they are true, then somebody ought to be—the person who's responsible—should be fired, should be sued, and/or should be prosecuted. And then you'll have a cleaner agency.

“Now, I don't have any questions. You're either going to do it, or you're not. But I think a lot of the members of the committee agree with me: We're going to be watching. Every time the FDIC comes before the Banking Committee, as long as I'm on it, I'm going to ask you about progress, with specificity.” 

Background:

• Kennedy introduced the FDIC Discrimination Relief Act of 2024 to empower current and former FDIC employees who experienced discrimination or sexual harassment to have their day in court. 

• The FDIC recently published a report detailing the toxic culture that has unfolded at the agency under Chairman Martin Gruenberg’s watch.

• More than 500 of the FDIC’s 6,000 employees reported instances of sexual harassment, racial or gender discrimination, verbal abuse or other inappropriate behavior.

• Several employees accused Gruenberg of threatening and verbally abusive conduct. Employees reported that Gruenberg has an explosive temper and often berated employees, including one instance in which he reportedly threw the staff’s papers against the wall. One employee said, “In my entire career of 35 years, I’ve never had anybody treat me like that.”

• Gruenberg has been on the FDIC’s Board of Directors since August 2005. During that time, at least 92 employees reported instances of harassment or discrimination to the agency. Investigators found that the FDIC did not fire, demote or cut the pay of a single alleged harasser while Gruenberg was on the FDIC’s board.

• In 2021, Biden vowed to fire any appointee who disrespected his or her staff “on the spot.” The president also said he expects each appointee to similarly fire employees who disrespect their colleagues. Biden has not yet asked for Gruenberg’s resignation.

• Kennedy called for Gruenberg’s resignation last year when revelations of his inappropriate conduct at the FDIC broke. He penned this op-ed in The Hill urging Gruenberg to resign so a new leader could address the culture problems within the agency.

View Kennedy’s full remarks here.

WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced $5,253,234 in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grants for Louisiana disaster aid.

“Hurricanes Laura and Ida hit our communities in south Louisiana hard. This $5.3 million will help cover emergency costs for Jefferson Parish and restoration efforts for McNeese University’s Cowboy Stadium,” said Kennedy.

The FEMA aid will fund the following:

• $4,010,251 to the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office for emergency protective measures as a result of Hurricane Ida.

• $1,242,983 to the Office of Risk Management for permanent restoration to the McNeese Cowboy Stadium lighting as a result of Hurricane Laura.

MADISONVILLE, La. – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) joined Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and colleagues in a letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael Regan urging the agency to reject a California request that would impose high costs on the rest of the country.

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) is seeking a waiver from the EPA because the agency is attempting to enforce a ban on the use of diesel-electric trains and require zero-emission trains by 2030 or 2035, depending on the type of train. The high costs and underdeveloped technology of zero-emission trains make this extreme rule unrealistic.

“We write to express our strong opposition to a pending request by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to authorize enforcement of its rule to ban proven and efficient diesel-electric locomotives,” the senators began.

“The California rule is plainly unworkable. . . . [N]o economically-viable technology for full zero-emission operation on long haul service exists, short of the immense expense and infeasible logistics of running overhead electric wires across an entire network, which even CARB does not anticipate in its economic impact analysis,” they added.

“The costs of the California rule would be staggering: CARB acknowledges an impact on . . . roughly half of the domestic Class I locomotive fleet, with compliance costs of nearly $16 billion through 2050,” the senators wrote.

The senators explained that those costs would increase the financial burdens on everyday Americans.

“We urge you to protect interstate commerce with a complete denial of CARB’s request,” they concluded.

Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), John Cornyn (R-Texas), John Thune (R-S.D.), John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Tim Scott (R-S.C.), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Todd Young (R-Ind.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), Ted Budd (R-N.C.), Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) and Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.) also signed the letter.

The full letter is available here.

MADISONVILLE, La. – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced $1,223,795 in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grants for Louisiana disaster aid.

“St. Mary Parish is still recovering after bad flooding. I’m thankful for this $1.2 million, which will support Louisianians’ efforts to rebuild their community,” said Kennedy.

The FEMA aid will fund the following:

• $1,165,525 for St. Mary Parish for the elevation of two existing structures that are either wood frame slab-on-grade or elevated residential structures that have experienced repetitive flood damage from previous storm events. 

• $58,270 for management costs associated with the elevation project in St. Mary Parish.