A new report from the American Independent revealed how Ted Budd yet again put his wealthy corporate backers ahead of the people of North Carolina.
The timeline:
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2017-Present: Wall Street and financial services industry fund Budd’s campaign with over $500,000.
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2017: Budd votes for a bill to allow big banks and credit card companies to gouge small businesses in fees.
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2019: Budd votes to protect big credit card companies from class action lawsuits when they exploit customers.
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2019: Budd votes against a resolution encouraging financial services companies to help consumers get through the government shutdown.
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2020: Budd opposes legislation to increase credit report transparency.
Key points from the American Independent article:
Josh Israel
08/19/22
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Budd, who represents North Carolina’s 13th Congressional District, serves on the House Financial Services Committee, which oversees the housing and banking services sector and consumer protection laws. He has frequently cast votes that would protect the interests of financial services companies rather than those of his constituents.
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Budd voted against the Protecting Your Credit Score Act of 2020, which would have required financial companies to provide credit reports and other information to consumers.
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He opposed the Consumers First Act of 2019, which would have protected consumers’ rights to file class-action lawsuits against credit card companies and other financial providers.
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Both bills passed in the House, but were not given a vote in the Senate.
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In 2019, Budd voted no on a nonbinding resolution urging financial companies to “work proactively with their customers affected by the shutdown of the Federal Government who may be facing short-term financial hardship and long-term damage to their creditworthiness through no fault of their own.” The resolution passed in the House.
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During his first months in Congress, Budd backed an effort in 2017 to repeal a consumer protection provision of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, enacted in 2010, that capped how much credit card companies could charge retailers in fees for debit card purchases.
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That July, Bloomberg noted his efforts in a story titled “Taking Wall Street’s Side, Young Congressman Infuriates Allies.” It quoted ads sponsored by the National Retail Federation, a trade group for merchants, denouncing Budd as a Wall Street “pawn.”
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In the weeks before and after Budd’s May 4, 2017, committee vote to advance the “Financial CHOICE Act” repeal, financial services political action committees rewarded him with donations.
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These included $1,000 from Discover Financial Services; $5,000 from Regions Financial Corporation; $1,000 from the Bank Policy Institute; $1,000 from the American Financial Services Association; $2,000 from Bank of America; $2,500 from the American Bankers Association; $2,000 from Citigroup Inc.; $2,000 from JPMorgan Chase & Co.; $2,500 from Capital One Financial Corp.; and $2,500 from Mastercard International.
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In total, Budd has received more than $344,000 in contributions from commercial banks during his career, according to OpenSecrets, and at least $157,000 from financial and credit services companies. This ranks both groups as among his top 10 largest sources of industry campaign cash.
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