The Republican-led Senate on Wednesday restored the Export-Import Bank to full working order after more than four years of it being being effectively closed down by conservative critics in Congress.
Lawmakers approved President Trump’s nominations of Spencer Bachus, Judith DelZoppo Pryor, and Kimberly Reed to the bank’s board, giving it a quorum for the first time since 2016, allowing it to once again approve large transactions.
The Export-Import Bank provides loans, guarantees, and other financing to encourage foreign purchases of U.S. goods. The bank’s restoration was a win for business groups and the White House, who have called it an essential tool for reaching foreign markets and lobbied hard for its return.
“While the agency was sidelined, billions of dollars’ worth of deals were lost to foreign competitors, resulting in tens of thousands of unrealized manufacturing jobs,” said National Association of Manufacturers President Jay Timmons. “Thanks to the leadership of President Trump, [Senate Majority] Leader [Mitch] McConnell, and senators on both sides of the aisle, this self-inflicted damage is now over.”
Reed, who will become the new president, was approved on 79-17 vote, Bachus on a 72-22 vote, and Pryor on a 77-19 vote. In each case, conservative senators accounted for most of the “no” votes.
The bank has not been fully operational since 2014 after conservative lawmakers caused its charter to lapse. The bank’s charter was subsequently renewed through this year, but the board lost a quorum in 2016 when departing members were not replaced. While technically still open since then, it could not provide loans or guarantees above $10 million, severely limiting its effectiveness.
Critics, ranging from conservatives such as Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., to liberals such as Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., have called the bank a form of corporate welfare, noting especially the large share of its financing that has gone in past years to Boeing. In a Senate floor speech Tuesday, Toomey said the past four years, during which the bank has been able only to execute small deals because of the lack of a quorum, showed there was no need for the bank and accused Senate colleagues of blocking all efforts at reform.
