Rep. Rokita Pushes to End Citibank’s Federal Contract After Finance Giant Pushes Corporate Gun Control

New York City police officers stand guard outside a Citibank branch as protestors associat
AP Photo/Mary Altaffer

Rep. Todd Rokita (R-IN) is pushing to end Citibank’s federal contract after the finance giant adopted new gun policies that do not respect the Second Amendment.

Citibank currently enjoys a $700 billion contract with the General Services Administration (GSA), and Rokita is seeking to have that contract terminated.

Rokita sent a letter to GSA administrator Emily W. Murphy, in which he pointed to Citibank’s new policy mandating that financial customers in the firearms sector refuse to sell “high capacity” magazines and bump stocks, and also refuse to sell long guns to any one under 21, although federal law allows sales to customers age 18 and up.

Citibank’s policy also requires customers in the firearms industry to go beyond federal requirements on background checks and refuse sales to anyone whose background check goes three days without conclusively proving the would-be buyer is barred from firearm possession.

Rokita described these policies as “a flagrant attempt to undermine our fundamental rights by caving to radicals not endorsed by our federal government.” He told Administrator Murphy, “Our federal government should instead do business with companies that respect all of our constitutional rights, including the Second Amendment.”

He called on GSA to “take all necessary steps to review and terminate its contract with Citibank,” unless the finance giant reverses policy.

During an April 14 interview on Breitbart News Saturday, Rep. Rokita emphasized that Citibank has proven to be “a huge critic of the NRA and the Second Amendment itself.” He praised the 15 co-signatories who joined him in calling for Citibank’s federal contract to be terminated.

The 15 Reps. who signed Rokita’s letter are Rick Allen (R-GA), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Ralph Norman (R-SC), Doug Lamborn (R-CO), Rep. Louis Gohmert (R-TX) Steve Russell (R-OK), Steve King (R-IA), Tom Marino (R-PA), Paul Gosar (R-AZ), Jeff Duncan (R-SC), Ralph Abraham (R-LA), Thomas Massie (R-KY), Matt Gaetz (R-FL), Lamar Smith (R-TX), and Ron Estes (R-KS).

Rokita said he wants to be sure Citibank “is not making money off taxpayers when they have so little regard for the God-given right taxpayers have, and that includes, certainly, the Second Amendment.”

AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News, the host of the Breitbart podcast Bullets with AWR Hawkins, and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com. Sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange.

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