|
|
The
views expressed
on this page are soley those of the author and do not
necessarily
represent the views of County News Online
|
The Daily Signal
Smoking Gun?
Tape Recordings Reveal the Real Reason Bank Closed Gun Seller’s Account
Kelsey Harkness
January 14, 2015
Another gun seller says his firearms business was forced to shut down
its bank account as a result of the government’s secretive initiative
known as Operation Choke Point.
This time, he’s offering audio recordings to prove it.
Mike Schuetz is a former state employee who worked as a probation and
parole officer for eight years in Hawkins, Wis.
After working for the state, he told Breitbart News that he decided to
open a private investigation business and operate a gun store on the
side.
His store, Hawkins Guns LLC, sells both firearms and ammunition.
To manage his finances, Schuetz set up a business account with Heritage
Credit Union located in Hawkins.
On Nov. 13, 2014, Hawkins Guns LLC posted this message on its Facebook
page about the credit union’s decision to close its business account
(see link below):
In an audio recording released by Schuetz, a Heritage Credit Union bank
teller told him: “We have to answer to the examiners. Whoever they are.”
Schuetz wasn’t satisfied with that response and asked to speak with a
manager about why the bank was closing an account for a legal and
legitimate business.
A regional manager explained to Schuetz that federal examiners came
into Heritage Credit Union to perform “an exam on everything.”
Schuetz recorded a series of conversations and phone calls between
himself and employees at Heritage Credit Union. The U.S. Consumer
Coalition posted audio of those recordings.
The U.S. Consumer Coalition has helped expose Operation Choke Point and
its impact on businesses across America. The story sparked a segment on
Fox News’ “Special Report” this evening.
In the audio recordings, a regional manager is heard citing regulations
handed down from the National Credit Union Administration, which
regulates, charters and supervises more than 95 million account holders
in federal and state-chartered credit unions.
The Heritage Credit Union regional manager told Schuetz:
“Examiners from NCUA [the National Credit Union Administration] came in
and looked at our accounts … looked at our books. Here’s some accounts
that we feel that we’re going to regulate you on … and kinda put the
screws to us as far as what we could and couldn’t do. The regulatory
and compliance issues that we said earlier are true. We never used to
have to do that stuff.”
The National Credit Union Administration, an independent federal agency
that touts on its website that it has “the backing of the full faith
and credit of the U.S. government,” told The Daily Signal that the case
has nothing to do with Operation Choke Point. A spokesman sent this
statement:
NCUA cannot comment on specifics of any matter
involving credit union supervision. NCUA does not have a policy
specific to any business, nor do we instruct a credit union about what
individuals or businesses it can serve. The decision to open, close or
decline an individual or business account generally lies with the
credit union.
As the provider of insurance coverage for the
accounts of nearly 100 million members in 6,500 credit unions, NCUA
requires all those credit unions to evaluate risks posed by accounts
and maintain the necessary capacity to effectively manage those risks.
Heritage Credit Union is chartered by the state of Wisconsin, which is
its primary regulator.
The Obama administration contends that Operation Choke Point combats
unlawful, mass-market consumer fraud. However, an earlier report by the
House Oversight and Government Reform Committee found that the Justice
Department initiative’s targets included legal businesses such as
short-term lenders, firearms and ammunition merchants, coin dealers,
tobacco sellers and home-based charities.
According to Breitbart, Heritage Credit Union eventually told Schuetz
the bank is trying to “fix” the situation and open an account for his
firearms business. But having already found another bank that won’t
discriminate against gun sellers, Schuetz has no interest in going back.
Read the article with links and a video at The Daily Signal
|
|
|
|
