Democratic Donors Benefit From Democratic Policies

By Timothy P. Carney

Friday, October 17, 2014

Democrats have a neat little two-step when it comes to money in politics: First, they malign Republican policies by noting that rich people favor Republicans. If you point out that rich people are just as likely to favor Democrats, as I did in my most recent column, they respond that their rich people aren’t seeking personal benefit.

This second defense is completely false, too. Republican donors may benefit from deregulation and tax cuts that Republicans favor, but Democratic donors benefit from the subsidies, taxes, and regulations that Democrats favor.

Democratic lawmakers, for instance, almost uniformly support the Export-Import Bank, a federal agency that subsidizes U.S. exports. One of Ex-Im’s major products is insurance for exporters. In fiscal 2013, the second-largest beneficiary of Ex-Im insurance was the Connell Company. Throughout 2013, the third-biggest donor to Democrats was Grover Connell together with his wife Patricia — the owners of the company.

Billionaire financier Tom Steyer is spending more money on politics than anyone else in America, according to data from the Center for Responsive Politics. Steyer is a billionaire investor who is loudly and slowly divesting from fossil fuels while he pushes for climate change policy. As Steyer spoke at a retreat for the Democracy Alliance — a club of millionaire Democratic donors — Politico reporter Ken Vogel pointed out that Steyer “has invested in renewable energy initiatives that could be boosted by his advocacy.”

Over the summer I emailed Steyer’s office and asked his spokeswoman to “describe to me what renewable energy investments Mr. Steyer holds.” They didn’t.

Steyer also benefited from a $10 million earmark for infrastructure in the Mission Bay neighborhood — a pocket of urban wealth that exceeds even affluent San Francisco’s average. Steyer’s fund, Farallon Capital Management, was a major developer in the neighborhood and had lobbied Congress for money. Democrats in Congress clearly listened.

You might consider Steyer the heir to George Soros, who was the top funder of Democratic causes from 2004 through 2008. Among the enterprises Soros launched in the Obama years is a green-energy investment fund called Silver Lake Kraftwerk. This fund, focused on alternative energy, obviously profits from Democrat green-energy subsidies, mandates, and regulations. For good measure, Soros hired Obama green-energy appointee Cathy Zoi to help run the fund.

Sally Susman runs the lobbying shop of drugmaker Pfizer, and she also was a major volunteer fundraiser for Obama — a “bundler,” in the parlance of political money. Pfizer lobbied for and helped shape Obamacare, which included subsidies and mandates that would profit the drug industry and which kept in place the ban on reimportation of prescription drugs. All of these are big government policies that benefit Susman’s employer.

In fact, Susman’s boss, CEO Jeff Kindler, got a small raise in 2010, and Pfizer’s board cited his lobbying on Obamacare in justifying the raise to shareholders.

George Kaiser was another Obama bundler and the biggest investor in Solyndra. The solar panel startup company was a poster child for Obama’s green stimulus, getting a half-billion dollar loan guarantee from U.S. taxpayers, plus Export-Import Bank subsidies, before going bankrupt.

Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk donates to both parties, but his top recipient is Barack Obama. Musk’s electric car company Tesla has benefited from loan guarantees and stimulus tax credits. His solar-installation company has profited from solar subsidies. And Obama’s Export-Import Bank has subsidized Musk’s rocket venture.

Warren Buffett is the second-richest man in America, and he has been an Obama fundraiser. Buffett has repeatedly profited from Obama’s big government policies. Obama helped save the estate tax, which Buffett supports, and which profits Obama by forcing family-owned companies to sell out to him. Buffett recently became a big investor in wind energy, while admitting that it’s only profitable because of the subsidies Obama provides.

Investor Michael Kempner bundled $3 million for Obama’s re-election. He’s also a top investor in high-tech light bulbs, which few people would buy if not for Obama-backed light bulb regulations.

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee’s top lobbyist bundler in August was the American Association for Justice, formerly the Association of Trial Lawyers of America. AAJ is the top lobby for trial lawyers — an industry that benefits greatly from Democratic governance.

These are just a few of the more visible Democratic donors of recent years. These donors probably believe that the policies they favor are good for the whole country as well as for their own bottom line.

Guess what? Many conservative donors believe free enterprise is good for the whole country, too.

For some reason, many Democrats find it important to view their opponents as the party of the rich. This is part of a self-image that is apparently more dear to them than the truth.