Warren and ‘Squad’ Introduce Bill to Rein In Private Equity Firms

Erin Clark for The Boston Globe/Getty Images

(Bloomberg) — Elizabeth Warren introduced legislation Thursday aimed at reining in private equity firms, joining forces with two congresswomen — Ayanna Pressley and Rashida Tlaib — targeted by President Donald Trump.

Pressley and Tlaib are members of a self-described “squad’ of four female lawmakers of color who Trump has told to go back to the “crime infested places from which they came.” The House this week passed a resolution condemning the comments as “racist.”

The Stop Wall Street Looting Act coincides with the rollout of a new campaign policy plan that aims to slap new rules on the financial sector. It would require private-equity firms responsible for debts and retirement pension obligations of companies they purchase, while making their profits contingent on the success of the entities they control.

“For far too long, Washington has looked the other way while private equity firms take over companies, load them with debt, strip them of their wealth, and walk away scot-free — leaving workers, consumers, and whole communities to pick up the pieces,” Warren said in a statement.

‘Send Her Back’ Is Trump’s New ‘Lock Her Up’

President Donald Trump’s supporters may have just found the 2020 version of “Lock Her Up.”

Audience members at Trump’s rally in North Carolina on Wednesday night at one point chanted“Send her back!” as the president listed a number of remarks he said freshman Representative Ilhan Omar had made that he considered unpatriotic or anti-Semitic.

The moment echoed the familiar refrain at Trump’s 2016 rallies: “Lock her up,” a reference to his unsubstantiated claims that his Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton, illegally used a personal email server.

A day after the House rebuked Trump for his attacks on Omar and three other Democratic lawmakers of color, Trump laid out a bill of complaints about the four women at a political rally in the Tar Heel state, a presidential battleground he narrowly won three years ago.

The rebuke was over Trump’s tweet earlier this week suggesting all four lawmakers “go back” to the countries they came from. Critics on the left and right called the tweet racist and, regardless, it was inaccurate. Three of the women were born in the U.S., and all are American citizens.

In a sign that fallout from the spat could be starting to cause some hand-wringing among House Republicans, Representative Mark Walker of North Carolina tweeted that he “struggled” with the chant at Wednesday’s rally.

Omar’s “history, words & actions reveal her great disdain for both America & Israel,” Walker alleged. “That should be our focus and not phrasing that’s painful to our friends in the minority communities.” — Kathleen Hunter

Here’s What Happened Wednesday:

• CNN and the Democratic National Committee unveiled the list of the 20 candidates who will participate in the second presidential primary debates of the 2020 election in Detroit on July 30 and 31. Ten candidates will appear on each stage. The group participating each night will be selected at random in a live draw on CNN on Thursday. The candidates are: Joe Biden; Cory Booker; Pete Buttigieg; Julian Castro; Tulsi Gabbard; Kirsten Gillibrand; Kamala Harris; Jay Inslee; Amy Klobuchar; Beto O’Rourke; Bernie Sanders; Elizabeth Warren; Marianne Williamson; Andrew Yang; Michael Bennet; Tim Ryan; John Hickenlooper; Bill de Blasio; John Delaney; Steve Bullock;
• Bernie Sanders added fuel to a debate over health care consuming the Democratic race, calling on his presidential rivals to reject donations from the industry. In a sweeping defense of his “Medicare for All” proposal that would eventually end private insurance, the Vermont senator said the party shouldn’t accept contributions of more than $200 from a list of pharmaceutical and health-insurance industry political action committees, executives and lobbyists.

Coming Up This Week:

Nineteen of the two dozen or so Democratic candidates are participating in forums organized by AARP this week.

• A Friday event in Sioux City will feature Senator Elizabeth Warren, author Marianne Williamson, former Representative Beto O’Rourke and tech entrepreneur Andrew Yang.
• A Saturday event in Council Bluffs will feature Senator Bernie Sanders, South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg, Montana Governor Steve Bullock and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio.