WASHINGTON–During his appearance before the Senate Banking Committee, NCUA Chairman Rodney Hood found himself being grilled by one senator over whether an “independent” regulator should appear in a video on behalf of the Trump administration.
While Hood was on hand with two other regulators as part of the Senate’s regular oversight of financial regulators, Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) had repeated questions for Hood over whether he should have appeared in the video. In a surprise move, Hood was appointed chairman by President Trump earlier this year, replacing then chair J. Mark McWatters, who remains on the board.
As CUToday.info reported here, in October Hood appeared in the video in which he extolled the Trump Administration and said President Trump had done more for African-Americans than any other president during his lifetime. The video, in which Hood is not identified by name, was distributed by the White House’s Twitter feed.
Strong Responses
Hood’s appearance in the video drew strong responses from both critics and supporters, as CUToday.info reported here.
Following his prepared statement, Hood was asked by Brown whether he agreed an independent agency should operate free of control from the White House, with Hood responding he is “committed to being independent.”
Brown then tried several times to get Hood to state that independence included not being influenced by the White House, but Hood repeated his original statement."OK, I get it," Brown finally said.
Brown then shared correspondence between himself and the agency after Brown had inquired about the appearance in the video earlier this year, and pointed to NCUA’s response, which included photos of Hood in a variety of settings.
“I am concerned about your photo opp with President Trump,” Brown said. “Could you identify the people in these pictures?”
‘Not Sure You Understand’
Hood responded by saying the pictures were from various meetings and speaking engagements with “stakeholders” during his first six months as chair, saying they were from “activities” where “we have kept America’s credit unions safe and sound.”
“I am just not sure you understand what independent regulator means,” said Brown. “I hope the lesson you take from this, Chairman Hood, is you are independent from the administration, the person who nominated you, any person who might influence you.”
Later, several Republican members of the Senate committee made comments to Hood that they would like an opportunity to get a photo with the chairman if he is available.