Allied Progress: What A Shock: Ex-Gottheimer Aide Cashes In At Private Equity Group
PRESS RELEASE
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Representative Josh Gottheimer’s (D-NJ) top donor is the world’s largest private equity firm so it should come as no surprise that his former Legislative Director has been tapped to become one of the top lobbyists for the American Investment Council, the trade group that represents the private equity industry in Washington, D.C.
According to Politico, Michael Luksowas a staffer in Gottheimer’s office since he began serving in Congress and also worked for other Democratic members on Capitol Hill, yet he can now count former staffers from Vice President Pence’s office and Trump’s Treasury Department as colleagues.
“It comes as no surprise that Gottheimer’s office door revolves so smoothly between Congress and Wall Street because his agenda is Wall Street’s agenda. He sets an example to his staff as someone who takes the financial industry’s money hand over fist and regularly votes in line with their interests at the expense of everyday consumers. His eagerness to get in bed with the industry doesn’t exactly discourage aides from doing the same” said Patrice Snow, spokeswoman for Allied Progress.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:
Gottheimer’s Biggest Donor Is The Blackstone Group, The World’s Largest Private Equity And Real Estate Firm. The Blackstone Group has been Josh Gottheimer’s largest donor during his congressional career, with a total of $96,750 coming from individuals associated with the company. [Contributors 2015 – 2018, Rep. Josh Gottheimer – New Jersey District 05, OpenSecrets.org, accessed 11/08/18]
- Reuters Has Referred To The Blackstone Group As “The World’s Largest Manager of Assets Such As Private Equity And Real Estate […]”“Blackstone Group LP (BX.N), the world’s largest manager of assets such as private equity and real estate, is kicking off a fundraising ‘super cycle’ which could see it manage more than half a trillion dollars in assets, it’s chairman and CEO Stephen Schwarzman said on Thursday.” [Joshua Franklin, “Blackstone seeks to boost assets with new fundraising ‘super cycle’,”Reuters, 07/19/18]
Josh Gottheimer Has Voted With President Trump To De-Regulate Wall Street and Big Banks.
- Since Coming To Congress, Gottheimer Has Voted With President Trump More Than Half The Time [“Tracking Congress In The Age Of Trump,” FiveThirtyEight, accessed 12/13/18]
- In 2018, Gottheimer Supported Sen. Mike Crapo’s Banking “Reform” Bill That Raised The Threshold For A Bank To Be Considered Systematically Important And Weakened Anti-Discrimination Standards In Housing. [Roll Call 216, US House of Representatives, 114thCongress, 05/22/18]
- Gottheimer Was 1 Of Only 9 Democrats To Vote For A Bill That Would “Paralyze The SEC” And “Empower Wall Street Lawyers To Overturn Its Decisions”[House Vote 51, H.R. 78, 01/12/17]
- Gottheimer Was 1 Of Only 13 Democrats To Vote For A Bill To Roll Back Dodd-Frank’s Stress Tests And Benefit The Country’s Biggest Banks [House Vote 137, H.R. 4293, 04/11/18]
Josh Gottheimer Has Spent His Time In Congress Working To Eviscerate Post-Financial Crisis Reforms.
- Gottheimer Voted For An Anti-Dodd-Frank Bill That Would Expose Consumers And The Economy At Large To More Risky Subprime Mortgages [House Vote 64, H.R. 1153, 02/08/18]
- Gottheimer Voted For A Bill To Soften Oversight Of Ratings Agencies, Whose Carelessness Was A “Root Cause” Of The Financial Crisis [House Vote 615, H.R. 3911, 11/07/17]
- Gottheimer Was 1 Of Only 7 Democrats To Vote For A Bill To Roll Back Regulation On Swaps Markets, Which Maxine Waters Said “Fueled The [Financial] Crisis, Bankrupted Millions Of Homeowners, And Cost Taxpayers Trillions Of Dollars” [House Vote 54, H.R. 238, 01/12/17]
- Gottheimer Was 1 Of Only 19 Democrats To Vote For A Bill To “Boost Big Bank Profits” By Letting Them Keep Less Cash Reserved To Pay For Their Own Illegal Or Risky Behavior [House Vote 89, H.R. 4296, 02/27/18]
- Gottheimer Voted To Protect The Biggest 1% Of Banks From Systemic Risk Oversight [House Vote 694, H.R. 3312, 12/19/17]
The American Investment Council Counts Former Trump Staff Among Its Ranks
The AIC, Which Represents The Biggest Private Equity Firms, Includes A Former Trump Treasury Official And A Former Staffer For Mike Pence
The AIC’s Membership Includes The “Country’s Leading Private Equity Firms.” “Member firms of the AIC consist of the country’s leading private equity and growth capital firms united by their successful partnerships with limited partners and American businesses.” [“About the AIC,” American Investment Council, accessed 01/15/19]
Andrew Shult, The American Investment Council’s Digital Director, Previously Worked As Digital Director For Mike Pence’s Office From April 2018 To November 2018. [LinkedIn Profile For Andrew Shult, accessed 01/15/19]
Drew Maloney, Formerly A Senior Official In Trump’s Treasury Department, Left For The American Investment Council In June 2018. “The Treasury Department’s assistant secretary for legislative affairs, Drew Maloney, is planning to leave the Trump administration next week and is expected take a job leading the top trade association for private equity, according to people familiar with the move. The American Investment Council’s board of directors still must vote on Maloney’s appointment.” [Nancy Cook and Bernie Becker, “Top Treasury aide to leave administration for private equity trade group,” Politico, 06/07/18]
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Allied Progress is a consumer watchdog organization that uses hard-hitting research and creative campaigns to stand up to corporate special interests and hold their allies in Congress and the White House accountable.
