All along, the US president's choice of the top official of the banking regulator usually does not arouse the interest of many people, but this time, biden's nominee is different.
According to the National Public Radio (NPR) reported on November 18 local time, Biden has nominated Saule Omarova, a law professor at Cornell University, as the director of the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), which oversees the assets of more than 1,000 banks.
At the nomination confirmation hearing on the 18th, many Democrats in the US Congressional Senate Banking Committee supported the nomination, and progressives believed that Omarova would bring harsher measures to financial institutions that were criticized for being too friendly to the banking industry; but there was no Republican on the committee who supported her, and they thought that Omarova was too "radical" to nationalize the banking industry.
In addition, Omarova's personal experience has also become the focus of criticism. At the hearing, a Republican senator mentioned her birth in the Soviet Union and asked her personally: "Should you be called 'professor' or 'comrade'?" ”
Questioned, Omalova, now a U.S. citizen, vehemently denies that she is a communist, insists she does not support the ideology, and stresses that she cannot choose her birthplace. She accused critics of being criticized because she was a woman and a minority.
Screenshot of NPR report
What do Omarova's critics say?
In a speech in October, Republican Senator Pat Toomey excitedly told colleagues about the nomination of Omarova: "I don't think I've ever seen any regulatory body in our federal government have such a radical choice." ”
"Omarova clearly hates anything like free-market capitalism." As Toumy said this, he also listed her relevant academic research. In her speech, Toomey also believes that Omarova's interest in these topics may have been shaped by her upbringing.
"You can ask yourself, how does a person come up with these ideas? Well, maybe one possible factor is that someone grew up in the USSR and then went to Moscow State University and won the Vladimir Lenin Scholarship. Toumy said.
According to NPR, Omarova was born in the Soviet Union, and more specifically, the location is now Kazakhstan. She came to the United States as an exchange student in 1991 as a student at Moscow State University. However, when the Soviet Union collapsed, she remained in the United States and is now an American citizen.
Omarova attends the nomination confirmation hearing Pictured from the US media
"Should I call you 'professor' or 'comrade'?"
Around Omarova's "Soviet background", a surprising scene also occurred at the nomination confirmation hearing on the 18th.
In questioning Omarova, Republican Senator John Kennedy (unrelated to the famous Kennedy family) asked sarcastically, "I don't know if I should call you 'professor' or 'gay.'" ”
The live video shows that as soon as the words came out, someone at the scene whispered: "Oh my God! ”
In response to this question, Omarova replied on the spot: "I am not a communist, I do not agree with this ideology, I cannot choose my birthplace." ”
Kennedy asked Omarova live a screenshot of Twitter
After Kennedy and Omarova's Q&A, Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat, hit kennedy back on the spot: "Sexism, racism, it's joe McCarthy's 'red terror policy' of the 1950s... It's now Washington in 2021. ”
Image from Twitter
In an interview with MsNBC, Omarova said: "My entire academic career has revolved around how to ensure that our financial system is stable, effective and efficient. ”
In addition to her own pushback to the questioning, Omarova's supporters have also denounced her critics. In an interview with NPR, Senator Sherrod Brown, a Democrat who chairs Senate Banking Committee, called Toumy's remarks a "despicable personal attack." On the 18th, after Kennedy questioned Omarova, Brown used the word again.
Who is Sole Omalova?
Omarova, a law professor currently at Cornell University in the United States, is reportedly well-versed in corporate law and financial regulation. Previously, she worked as a lawyer at Davis Polk and during the George W. Bush administration, she was a special adviser to the U.S. Treasury Department on regulatory policy.
Although her research ranges from energy policy to infrastructure investment, Omarova is known more than for her as a scholar in the field of financial regulation.
"Solai (Omarova) is widely regarded as one of the world's top financial regulatory scholars." Jeremy Kress, an assistant professor of business law at the University of Michigan, said: "Whether you agree with her or disagree, if you don't think hard about what Sauerer wrote about current U.S. banking law and financial regulation topics, you can't have a full debate on these topics." ”
In fact, Omarova's research has indeed been under constant fire from some critics.
In a paper, she reportedly suggested that the U.S. federal government could provide a bank account for every American through the Federal Reserve. Proponents of the proposal say it would drastically reduce the number of "unbanked", while critics argue that it would weaken commercial banks.
In another article, Omarova called on the U.S. government to create a agency similar to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that would approve or reject new financial products.
What is OCC? Why is its work important?
Founded in 1863, the Office of The Comptroller of The Currency oversees banks, stretching from small community lenders to larger institutions, including Bank of America, CitiBank, and Wells Fargo.
Although the OCC is affiliated with the U.S. Treasury Department, it operates independently, and part of its role is to "ensure fair opportunity and equal treatment for bank customers."
In addition, although the size of the OCC is relatively small, its regulatory scope is quite large. In total, the OCC-regulated institutions have nearly $15 trillion worth of assets, which account for about 65 percent of the total assets of U.S. commercial banks.
Previously, the OCC had been criticized for being too close to the banks it regulated. Joseph Otting, who served as OCC administrator during the Trump administration, for example, directly called the bank his "customer."
Infographic: The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency From Social Media
If the nomination is confirmed, how does Omarova work?
The Wall Street Journal reports that the Biden administration's formal nomination of Omarova as OCC director is a major setback for Wall Street and other companies that have pushed to reject the nomination.
The NPR noted that financial experts say Omarova may take a tougher stance on banks, which progressives welcome, and that her nomination as OCC administrator is consistent with the biden administration's regulatory approach so far.
Kathryn Judge, a professor at Columbia Law School, said: "I do think part of what Omarova stands for is changing the status quo, and she's really determined to make sure that banks provide core services to the people who need them." ”
But at the same time, some experts believe that these critics, including Tomi, have actually misinterpreted Omarova's academic research.
How likely are Omarova's nomination confirmed?
Despite republican opposition, the White House is pushing ahead with Omarova's nomination.
A government official said in a statement to NPR: "Omarova is fully qualified for this position and given her proven track record in regulation and outstanding academic credentials, she was nominated for this position, a historic nomination that the White House strongly supports." ”
Yet Democrats, whether in the Senate or the Senate Banking Committee, have a slim majority, and they can't afford to lose even a single vote.
At the hearing on the 18th, one of the more moderate members of the Senate Banking Committee, Democratic Senator Jon Tester, expressed concern about Omarova's nomination.
Ahead of the hearing, he said in a statement: "Some of Omarova's past statements about the role of government in the financial system have raised real concerns about her impartial role as director of the OCC, and I look forward to discussing these remarks with her at the hearing." ”
By contrast, however, Senate Banking Committee Chairman Brown appears relatively optimistic. He believes Omarova's nomination will receive broad support from both parties.
"I'm very focused on this nomination and we're going to make it a reality." Brown said.
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