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Republicans question SEC hiring practices under Gensler's leadership

GrafaGrafa2024/09/12 07:35
By:Mahathir Bayena

House Republicans have launched an inquiry into the hiring practices of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), led by Chair Gary Gensler, suggesting that the agency may be hiring based on political affiliation. 

In a letter dated September 10, Representatives Jim Jordan, Patrick McHenry, and James Comer raised concerns about the SEC's hiring processes, citing potential violations of federal law.

The lawmakers accused Gensler, a Democrat, of appointing individuals from organisations with left-leaning ideologies to senior roles within the SEC. 

They pointed to emails released during an SEC rulemaking comment period as evidence that Gensler’s decision to hire Dr. Haoxiang Zhu as the Director of Trading and Markets may have been influenced by Zhu’s political beliefs. 

According to the letter, Zhu allegedly told Gensler in May 2021 that he was “in the right place on the political spectrum” before being hired six months later.

The letter stated, “As this correspondence suggests, the SEC appears to be unlawfully considering an applicant’s political ideology when hiring bureaucrats.” 

The lawmakers further argued that such actions could violate the Civil Service Reform Act by filling the agency with ideologically aligned employees, compromising the SEC’s impartiality.

The GOP lawmakers requested that Gensler provide documents and communications from April 17, 2021, onwards related to the hiring decisions for director, associate director, and staff positions within his office. 

They also asked for information regarding the evaluation of applicants' political affiliations or ideologies.

Gensler has been given a deadline of September 24 to comply with these requests and produce the relevant documents for the House Judiciary Committee, chaired by Jim Jordan. 

The SEC did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the matter.

Gensler’s tenure as SEC Chair has seen an increase in enforcement actions against cryptocurrency firms, reaching a 10-year high in 2023. 

If elected, former President Donald Trump has pledged to remove Gensler from his position at the SEC.

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