Editor’s note: Morning Money is a free version of POLITICO Pro Financial Services morning newsletter, which is delivered to our s each morning at 5:15 a.m. The POLITICO Pro platform combines the news you need with tools you can use to take action on the day’s biggest stories. Act on the news with POLITICO Pro . The big mystery for finance industry lobbyists gaming out the post-midterm landscape is Sen. Tim Scott and what he would do at the helm of the Senate Banking Committee. Here’s what we know after working our sources in Scott world and the Washington finance bubble. Get up to speed on Scott’s “Opportunity Agenda.” The South Carolina conservative Republican isn’t signaling concrete details of how he’d run the committee, in contrast with Rep. Patrick McHenry , who has sketched out specific legislative targets for House Financial Services. Scott is essentially a blank slate on crypto policy, for example, which is expected to dominate the financial policy debate next year. But people who know Scott well say his priorities will align with the Opportunity Agenda he has been sketching out for years. Economic empowerment — in particular for working-class people — is a major theme. It reflects Scott’s personal story — the child of a single mother who rose from poverty as an insurance agent and then became one of the most well-known politicians of his generation. It’s manifested in the form of bipartisan bills that would expand the types of consumer data that go into credit scoring and give credit unions more flexibility in the types of loans they can offer. Saat Alety , a Federal Hall Policy Advisors partner who was a key banking aide to Scott, has a piece of advice for crypto, housing and banking interests eager to influence his former boss’s agenda: "Folks will need to prove that their policy ideas have a connection to growing the economy for working-class people and making it easier for Americans to climb the economic ladder." Scott’s rhetoric and background could make him a tricky political foil for populist Democrats, such as current committee Chairman Sherrod Brown, who also frame their policies around attacking inequality. It could also yield bipartisan work, particularly around an embattled housing sector that falls under Senate Banking oversight, said Aaron Cutler, a former senior Republican House staffer who now leads the government relations and public affairs practice at Hogan Lovells. The 2024 factor is a big wild card for Scott. He is seen as a possible candidate in the Republican presidential primary, and it’s unclear how a campaign would affect his committee work. “The most important question, which I think will have a massive impact on his leadership, is what his political future is,” said one lobbyist who works with the committee. Scott’s spokesperson said : “Senator Scott’s Opportunity Agenda aims to breathe life into America’s forgotten communities and create pathways to economic opportunity for all Americans. But under the leadership of Joe Biden and Senate Democrats, access to the American Dream is further and further out of reach. The senator looks forward to holding them accountable and rolling out a common sense path forward once we know what the congressional landscape will be. Any announcements before that would be premature.” IT’S FRIDAY — Happy Jobs Day. Have a tip, story idea or feedback to share? Let us know: kdavidson@politico.com and ssutton@politico.com .
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