Abuse of Power -- Operation Choke Point

[kandrathe]

I just heard about another example of executive abuse of power I thought would be worth sharing here;

“Operation Choke Point”

The general outline is the DOJ and bank regulators are putting the screws to banks and other third-party payment processors to refuse banking services to companies and industries that are deemed to pose a “reputation risk” to the bank. Most controversially, the list of dubious industries is populated by enterprises that are entirely, or at least generally, legal.

[kandrathe]

Here is another article in TechDirt;

Let's not mince words: a program that was built upon the goals of stopping financial fraud has devolved into a massive government overreach into private businesses that are operating within the law. The way it works is that the DOJ informs financial institutions that certain industries are more likely than others to be involved in unauthorized charges of consumer credit and bank cards. They likewise inform the banks that the DOJ is going to keep a special super-awesome close-eye on these industries, with the implication being that there will be a great deal of prosecutorial action, subpoenas, and scrutiny on those industries, not mention penalties on the institutions that work with them. The intention of the government, it would seem, is to make the banks unwilling to deal with the government harassment and simply cut anyone in those industries off from the financial institutions. Nobody is happy about this.

-- Timothy Geigner

[FireIceTalon]

Ah, those poor banksters and capitalists. If only Big Gubbament would just stay out, all would be well!!

[kandrathe]

Ah, those poor banksters and capitalists. If only Big Gubbament would just stay out, all would be well!!

It's government(DOJ / FDIC) coercion on banks to close the accounts and refuse to do business with everyday people. There is no law, court, or due process here. It purely the whims of some out of control bureaucrats with little recourse by the people affected other than to attempt to do business elsewhere, until there is no place left that will serve you. Get the message. They don't want your kind around here.

BTW, the banks are doing fine by this -- rather than that broke guy getting a payday loan, he ends up paying $35 per bounced check to the bank instead of the $30 interest/fees on the short term loan (14 days) to the payday lender.

Maybe people will care when the targeted industries hit closer to home. It's ironic that we first heard about it from strippers -- you know, the undesirables. Who is next? What if the next administration has a different set of "undesirable" industries to target. As the member of a minority political movement, I'd have thought you might be more sensitive to vague targeting/coercion/suppression of minority groups outside the "rule of law", especially so since your group has been targeted very recently and used as an excuse for world wide war.