Conservatives are blasting their new boogeyman of wokeism after the second-largest bank collapse in US history, eschewing the more straightforward story of problematic balance sheets in favor of raw politics.
Sen. Josh Hawley complained that Silicon Valley Bank executives were spending their time on funding "woke garbage ("climate change solutions") rather than actual banking and now want a handout from taxpayers to save them."
"SVB = too woke to fail," Hawley tweeted on Monday.
To Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, the culprit was "Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion." The bank website says it was building a global workforce celebrating "greater dimensions of diversity."
"This bank, they're so concerned with DEI and politics and all kinds of stuff, I think that really diverted from them focusing on their core mission," DeSantis said on Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures."
Rep. Jim Comer, head of the House Oversight and Reform Committee, blasted "Democrat inflation" and called Silicon Valley Bank "one of the most woke banks in their quest for the ESG-type policy and investing," a reference to environmental, social, and governance policies.
"This could be a trend and there are consequences for bad Democrat policy and I think we need to keep an eye on all the banking sector right now," the Kentucky Republican said, also on Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures."
