With record gas prices devastating household budgets, President Joe Biden is deflecting blame, arguing Russia and corporate greed are the real causes. His critics, meanwhile, are pointing the finger at excessive government spending and the Federal Reserve for maintaining near-zero interest rates amid such spending.
According to experts, however, a little-known force that’s been largely ignored by the political class is playing a massive role on Wall Street and is partly to blame for spike in gas prices.
That force is environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing, the concept that investors should use these three broad categories when evaluating where to put their money, prioritizing certain values and “social responsibility” when making such decisions.
“The general premise of ESG theory is that corporations should deemphasize their traditional responsibility to maximize value for shareholders and instead make new, binding commitments to multiple alternative stakeholder groups,” read a recent letter submitted by the Competitive Enterprise Institute think tank and others.
The letter commented on a rule proposed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that would force corporations to radically expand their climate-change disclosures — a goal of past ESG activism.