(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) Biden’s Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm has come under scrutiny after admitting to owning stocks despite previous claims that she did not.
The revelation has sparked concerns about potential conflicts of interests and drawn criticism from members of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.
Granholm, during her confirmation process, had previously stated to the committee that she had divested from assets that could pose conflicts with her official duties as a Biden official. However, in a recent letter sent to the committee, she acknowledged to owning stocks.
“As you know, as part of the confirmation process before this Committee, in 2021 I divested from assets that could be in conflict with my official duties,” Granholm wrote in the letter, according to E&E News. “I did, however, retain assets that were determined by Government ethics officials to not conflict with my official duties.”
Granholm falsely stated before the committee in April that she had gotten rid of all her shares.
“I mistakenly told the Committee that I did not own any individual stocks, whereas I should have said that I did not own any conflicting stocks,” she added in the letter.
Adding fuel to the scandalous fire, Granholm also revealed her husband’s stocks, which were not previously reported. “As I was not previously aware of the asset, I did not report my spouse’s financial interest on my two prior Public Financial Disclosure Reports, nor was it included in the other paperwork associated with my nomination,” Granholm said.
She continued, “If it had been reported, the value would have been reported as ‘$1,001 – $15,000’ and the income amount would have been reported as ‘None (or less than $201).’”
The scandal surrounding Granholm’s stock ownership has raised questions about her judgement and potential conflicts of interest. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., a member of the Senate Energy Committee, slammed Granholm for providing the false statements and expressed his concerns on Twitter.
“So Granholm lied to me on April 20 – and it took the Administration 6 full weeks to admit it. Brazen,” Hawley said. In a subsequent tweet, Hawley demanded that Biden officials be banned from “owning & trading stock.”
It is time to BAN all senior executive branch officials and all members of Congress from owning & trading stock
— Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) June 9, 2023
Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., also ripped Cranholm’s failure to disclose the stocks, labelling the lie as unacceptable. “Secretary Granholm lied to the committee about her family’s stock holdings,” Barrasso said. “This comes after her failure to follow basic ethics and disclosure rules. This is a troubling pattern. It is unacceptable.”
