Andy Kim Presses SEC Nom Atkins About Being Listed As A ‘Special Contributor’ On Project 2025

2 days ago

During a Senate Banking Committee Hearing on Thursday, Sen. Andy Kim (D-NJ) asked the nominee for SEC Chair Paul Atkins on being listed as a special contributor to a portion of Project 2025.

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Transcript

00:00Thank you, Chair.

00:02Mr. Atkins, I wanted to just start with you.

00:05You know, I know that there was mentioned earlier

00:07about the consolidated audit trail.

00:09You know, I guess I just wanted to ask you, do you agree

00:12that the prospects

00:14of foreign companies manipulating our market presents a

00:18national security threat?

00:20Yes, and especially in a day of AI and everything else.

00:25So, I think hopefully all of us can agree upon that.

00:27So, I guess I wanted to ask, you know,

00:29the consolidated audit trail, CAT, it's really our only tool

00:33that tracks market manipulation across companies,

00:36particularly in foreign companies.

00:39What is your thoughts on whether

00:41or not we should continue on with CAT?

00:45Well, so the consolidated, I look forward to looking

00:49into what the status of that whole situation is.

00:53It's obviously cost a lot of money and a lot of effort,

00:57both by the SEC, but then also with respect

01:02to market participants.

01:03So, is it well coordinated and well calibrated

01:08to meet the needs that it's stated to, you know,

01:12hopefully meet?

01:13So, I think it needs to be reviewed.

01:17So, you don't have a position right now

01:19that it should be taken away?

01:21No, I need to look at what the status is.

01:24I only know what I read in the newspaper.

01:27But to see, FINRA's obviously involved in that,

01:30the SEC, and then the exchanges.

01:33A lot of people have spent a lot of money.

01:35I hope it's towards a good, you know, end.

01:39But that's what I intend to find out, should I be confirmed.

01:42Well, look, the reason why I raise this is

01:44because I know you were listed as a special contributor

01:47to that portion of the Project 2025,

01:5220 Project 2025 compilation there,

01:56which explicitly calls for the termination

01:58of the Consolidated Audit Trail Program.

02:01So, I guess I just wanted your response.

02:02Did you then disagree with what you saw

02:05in Project 2025, talking about this?

02:08Well, actually, I participated in a call or two on that.

02:12So, I wasn't involved with drafting.

02:15But, so again, I commit to looking at the situation

02:21the way it is now, what the plans are,

02:23how efficient it is, what the costs are gonna be.

02:26They've ballooned a lot from what it started out.

02:29And even the mission of it has kind of veered off

02:32from the way it was stated from the folks

02:35who voted on it back originally.

02:37So, I think we, like with anything else,

02:40things change over time, and I think we need to look

02:43to see if it's gonna be focused on the mission

02:46that it's trying to solve.

02:48Well, that's a helpful clarification,

02:49because I wanted to get a sense.

02:50I was concerned because it just seemed like,

02:54this is an important tool.

02:55It's important for us to be able to fight back

02:57against that type of manipulation that could occur

03:00when it comes to our markets, something that we've seen,

03:02and whether we see sort of a rise

03:04of greater global competition,

03:06whether concerns about Chinese companies

03:09or others trying to manipulate.

03:11So, please, that is something that I urge you,

03:13if you're confirmed, to prioritize

03:16and to do everything we can to make sure

03:19that these tools are in place.

03:21I personally think that the CAP program has been helpful,

03:25is important, and is really our only tool

03:28when it comes to this.

03:30So, I just wanted to emphasize that in particular.

03:34Mr. Molinaro, I just wanted to be able to turn to you,

03:37just be able to ask, when it comes to the FTA,

03:42just what your thoughts are in terms of how we consider

03:45adequately staffing that at a time when we've seen

03:49efforts across this administration

03:51to be able to decrease staff.

03:52In particular, I was very concerned about

03:54just the lack of protections for probationary employees

03:58in terms of how they were terminated at FTA.

04:01I'd like your response to that.

04:02Sure, as I mentioned earlier,

04:04and I appreciate the question very much,

04:06and our time together, I do want you to know

04:07I spent some time talking with Chris Galerie

04:10in New Jersey Transit.

04:12I don't know the status of those hiring

04:16and dismissal decisions.

04:18I only know what I've read.

04:20Having spent most of my life in local government,

04:22I can tell you on any given day,

04:24I would wake up and the federal or state government

04:26would impose a mandate that would require us

04:28to do more with less.

04:29My goal is to show respect to the career staff.

04:32I have a great deal of appreciation and admiration for them,

04:35assess the impact of those decisions,

04:38and to really demand and to work with the team

04:41to deliver the highest results with the team

04:44that's been presented to me.

04:45Well, as we talked about when we had a chance,

04:47I mean, right now, I think there's no one in this country

04:49that thinks that what we're doing on transit is enough.

04:51You know, there's more that we need to continue to push on,

04:54and for us to be able to meet that moment

04:56and supercharge this,

04:57I really think that we need to understand

04:59and be willing to take those types of investments.

05:01You and I talked about it as a national priority,

05:03and I think we should prioritize that expertise

05:06that can be brought by some of these public servants.

05:09We share that interest, Senator.

05:10I yield back.

Andy Kim Presses SEC Nom Atkins About Being Listed As A ‘Special Contributor’ On Project 2025

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