Washington, D.C. – After failing to qualify for the latest Republican Debate and a lackluster performance in the Iowa Caucus, Vivek Ramaswamy dropped out of the GOP presidential race, reinforcing what poll after poll has shown: attacking responsible investing is a losing issue.
Out of the gate Ramaswamy firmly laid the foundation for his divisive views on responsible investing, and failed to distance himself from the issue as the strategy proved ineffective.
- Ramaswamy “anchored” his presidential campaign in attacking big business and his initial campaign slogan was “Stop Wokeism. Vote Vivek.”
- Ramaswamy launched Strive Asset Management, explicitly as an anti-ESG asset management firm seeking to become the “go-to alternative for GOP states seeking to ditch the BlackRocks of the world.”
- Ramaswamy is the author of Woke Inc.: Inside Corporate America’s Social Justice Scam, which lays out his vociferous opposition to responsible investing and corporate social or environmental initiatives.
In response, Unlocking America’s Future spokesperson Kyle Herrig issued the following statement:
“Vivek Ramaswamy launched his campaign promising to ride his attacks on businesses that engage in responsible investment (also known as ESG) to the White House. This failure should serve as a warning sign for other politicians who are pushing talking points from corporate polluters: it’s a political loser. Research shows that responsible investing helps our economy and our climate, and keeps America competitive on the global stage. Forcing risky investments onto people while hurting business growth, jobs, and our economy is simply out of step with the American public.”
- Across party lines, Americans overwhelmingly support corporations’ efforts to invest responsibly, and even 70% of Republicans oppose government interference on this.
- A majority of Americans (83%) say they trust companies more than politicians when deciding whether they agree with a company’s stance on an issue.
- Only 8% of Americans think investigating how U.S. companies spend money on ESG initiatives should be a priority, and a majority of voters agree that financial managers should be allowed to consider environmental factors when making investing decisions.
- Research continues to show that sustainable funds have comparable, if not better, financial returns to traditional funds with less downside risk.
- Attacks on responsible investing are causing billions of dollars in lost returns for public pensions across the nation and costing taxpayers millions through increased state administration costs and higher interest rates and borrowing costs.
