Rep. Jim Banks told on Tuesday that he would like leaders of U.S. green groups who allegedly received Russian dollars to testify before Congress if the Republicans regain their majority in November.
Republican House Rep. Jim Banks said Tuesday he will call on U.S.-based environmental groups allegedly receiving Kremlin dollars to respond to Congress if his party regains control after November’s midterm elections.
It came after he signed a letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen demanding that she investigate reports that Russian money is funding prominent green groups to undermine the US energy sector.
“When we get a majority next January, I hope we call these groups — get these groups to testify before Congress,” Banks said in an interview with .
He said such groups “undermine national security” and influence the Biden administration’s environmental policies as the White House promotes clean energy as a replacement for Russian oil and gas.
Banks explained that representatives from organizations such as Sea Change and the Sierra Club would have to report to several committees, including the House Judiciary and Oversight Commissions.
“We need to get these groups and their leaders to stand before these committees and testify and explain their ties to our adversaries like Russia and the money they have received…which puts Russia first and America last,” he said. congressman. .
The Indiana MP who chairs the Republican Investigative Committee also demanded that environmental groups benefiting from the Moscow Treasury under the Foreign Agents Registration Act “because of the huge amount of money – millions of dollars – that these groups received from Russian oligarchs” .
GOP MPs have been sounding the alarm about such claims since at least 2017, although they have taken on new urgency since Russian President Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine in late February.
Banks said Russian-funded environmental groups are influencing President Joe Biden’s climate policy, which he warned would undermine the US response to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
The unprovoked and brutal attack wreaked havoc on the global energy supply chain, with fuel prices hitting record highs in the US and Europe before falling slightly.
Moscow’s goal, by funneling ostensible cash to Green groups, is to undermine US fossil fuel production while preserving the Russian economy, which is heavily dependent on energy exports. The vast country is among the top producers of oil and gas in the world.
Banks’ letter, sent earlier this month, which is also signed by Representatives Bill Johnson of Ohio and Ted Budd of North Carolina, points to a 2015 Washington Free Beacon report alleging a Bermuda-based front company with ties to Russian oil companies. interests, transferred $23. million to the California-based Sea Change Foundation in 2010 and 2011, citing IRS tax filings.
During those years, Sea Change reportedly also donated money to well-known organizations such as the Sierra Club, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), the League of Conservation Voters (LCV), and the Center for American Progress.
Meanwhile, President Joe Biden is using the Russian invasion to renew his push for clean energy as a more permanent and long-term alternative to dependence on dubious international players for oil.
He announced a total ban on Russian oil and gas imports in response to Putin’s ongoing attacks on Ukraine.
A view of the destruction following shelling in the Makiivka area in pro-Russian separatist-controlled Donetsk, Ukraine March 22. The US banned Russian energy imports in response to Putin’s invasion.
Firefighters stand in the courtyard of the destroyed building of the Kharkiv District Council in Kharkiv, Ukraine, on March 22.
“Over the past three months, I have had many conversations with our European friends about how they need to wean themselves from Russia – from Russian oil. This is simply unacceptable,” Biden said on March 8.
“This should motivate us to accelerate the transition to clean energy. As I said, this is a view shared by our European allies and a future where together we can achieve greater independence.”
Republicans have proposed cutting environmental regulations to boost U.S. fossil fuel production and reduce reliance on foreign energy. The demands were rejected by the White House.
But on Tuesday, Banks told that green groups allegedly benefiting from Russian money are influencing the Democratic agenda.
He also still has not received a response to the letter – and is not surprised.
“Groups like the Sierra Club have a huge impact on the Biden administration,” Banks said.
“Therefore, the Biden administration and these groups are embarrassed to explain that they are funded by Russian oligarchs who are profiting from the fact that the American oil and gas industry is shut down on [the] lap.
He added that the Green New Deal, promoted by progressive Democrats, is “funded by Russian profits” aimed at “destroying America’s oil and gas industry.”
Banks’ letter also references a 2014 private speech by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in which she says, “We even spoke out against fake environmental groups, and I’m a big environmentalist, but they were funded by the Russians.”
But speculation about the Kremlin’s role in foreign environmental groups arose even earlier in the international community.
Former NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen told The Guardian in 2014: “I have met allies who can report that Russia, in its sophisticated information and disinformation operations, has been actively engaging with so-called non-governmental organizations.”
These were “environmental organizations working against shale gas to keep Europe dependent on imported Russian gas.”
Banks’ interview with comes after he and two other Republican lawmakers wrote a letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen urging her to investigate allegations that the Kremlin was laundering money through a front company that gave millions to the California group Sea Change.
The European Union depends on Russia for almost half of its energy needs, putting the international bloc in a precarious position as it seeks to punish Putin while trying to find ways to reduce its dependence on Moscow’s oil and gas.
Banks told that Moscow-backed environmental groups were responsible for undermining the West’s response to Putin’s bloody attack on Ukraine today.
“There is no doubt that environmentalist groups like the Sierra Club, which have taken millions of dollars from Russian oligarchs, are undermining our ability to project power against Russia,” the deputy explained.
He said it “undermined our ability to fight back against Russia, to use America’s own energy, oil and gas reserves that we have at home.”
Parallel to the Banks letter is a broader group of Republicans in the House of Representatives who have sent letters directly to the Sierra Club, NRDC and LCV demanding disclosure whether their leaders are aware of concerns that Sea Change could be a conduit for Russian funding.
All three groups have previously denied allegations that they are cashing in on Kremlin dollars.