Republicans in both the House and the Senate have attempted to take down Operation Choke Point or similar initiatives for more than a year now. In February, the House of Representatives passed a bill that would prohibit the program with bipartisan support. In April, two weeks after The Daily Signal shared Lichterman’s story, Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Mike Lee, R-Utah, introduced an identical bill in the Senate. That measure has not yet been scheduled for a vote.
In February, the White House publicly opposed that bill, called the Financial Institution Customer Protection Act. In a statement, the administration said, “Restricting the federal banking agencies in this way could unnecessarily and dangerously hinder or compromise important law enforcement and national security efforts.”
Lichterman said he doesn’t hold a grudge against HomeTrust Bank for its actions, but is pleased that they’ve “seen the light.”
“They discovered after being led to it that no, there’s no reason to deny an honest upstanding young fellow like myself this service,” Lichterman, who’s 75 years young, said.