{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.shelby.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/newsreleases?ContentRecord_id=BDE36553-6F7F-4134-A43E-149B2A248B80", "Shelby Discusses Concerns with Ex-Im Bank, Advises Colleagues to Support Garrett", "2017-11-01", "2017", "2017-11", "Republican", "House", "AL", "Richard Shelby", "S000320", "www.shelby.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON, DC \u2013 U.S. Senator Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), senior member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, today voiced his strong concerns with the Export-Import Bank during a hearing to examine President Trump\u2019s six nominations to lead the bank.\r\n\u201cI have long held reservations about the Export-Import Bank operating in its current form. \u2026 I believe the Export-Import Bank is now a body rampant with corporate cronyism, corruption, and unaccountability.\u201d\r\nSenator Shelby also discussed his support for Former Congressman Scott Garrett, President Trump\u2019s nominee to head the Export-Import Bank, and urged his colleagues to advance all of President\u2019s Export-Import Bank nominees.\r\n\u201cI believe that Mr. Garrett is a man of principle. I have worked with him when he was on the Financial Services Committee. I believe he would be excellent. He is a principled man, and we need those kind of people at the bank. I hope we keep everybody together and that we confirm everybody. If we do not, we will see what we can do to slow the process down because the bank is still corporate welfare.\u201d\r\nDuring Senator Shelby\u2019s remarks, he cited his various issues with the Bank.\r\n\u201cLatest estimates indicate that the Export-Import Bank finances only two percent of total U.S. exports. This means 98 percent of exports from the U.S. are generated without the Bank\u2019s financing.\u201d\r\nHe pointed out that \u201csome large businesses have enough capital to buy their own bank,\u201d and that \u201clarge corporations do not need the Export-Import Bank to run an efficient export operation.\u201d\r\n\u201cI am never one to begrudge businesses for being successful. We want them all to be successful. However, the problem with the way the Bank currently operates is that it puts American taxpayers on the hook for deals that these large businesses could independently finance.\u201d\r\nSenator Shelby met with Garrett in August regarding his nomination. President Trump first announced his intent to nominate Garrett to be President of the Export-Import Bank in April. Garrett formerly served as New Jersey\u2019s Congressman for the Fifth District from 2003 \u2013 2017. During his time in the U.S. House of Representatives, he chaired the Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Securities, and Investment.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.shelby.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/newsreleases?ContentRecord_id=BDE36553-6F7F-4134-A43E-149B2A248B80"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.7817060686647892, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}