Louisiana's Kennedy to Biden Banking Nominee: Are You a Communist

Sen. John Kennedy questioned President Joe Biden’s nominee for Comptroller of the Currency, Saule Omarova, on her membership in a communist organization and her publicly radical views about government control of the economy and banking system.

Omarova has written a number of academic papers, some as recently as 2019, in which she called for the government to abolish private sector banking and put all bank accounts into the Federal Reserve.

In support of that idea, Omarova, in a speech earlier this year, said, “There will be no more private bank accounts, and all of the deposit accounts will be held directly at the Fed."

The President's nominee has also called for federal government to regulate the fossil fuel industry into bankruptcy as a way to pave the way for climate change policies.

Kennedy: “There was a group called the Young Communists, and you are a member, is that right?”

Omarova: “I’m not exactly sure which group you’re referring to.”

Kennedy: “Well, the formal name of it is the Leninist Communist Young Union of the Russian Federation, and it’s also known as the Leninist Komsomol of the Russian Federation. And it’s commonly referred to as the Young Communists. Were you a member?”

Kennedy: “Have you resigned?”

Omarova: “From the—”

Kennedy: “From the Young Communists.”

Omarova: “You grow out of it with age automatically.”

Kennedy: “Did you send them a letter though, resigning?”

Omarova: “Senator, this was many, many years ago. As far as I remember how the Soviet Union worked was at certain age, you automatically stop being—”

Kennedy: “Could you look at your records and see if you can find a copy?”

The Louisiana Senator then told Omarova, "I don't mean any disrespect, but I don't know whether to call you professor or comrade."