U.S. President Joe Biden talks about the state of vaccinations during a coronavirus disease response event (COVID-19) in the East Room of the White House in Washington on March 18, 2021.
Carlos Barria | Reuters
President Joe Biden’s closest advisers have ties to big business and Wall Street, and some earn millions of dollars in his career before entering the White House, according to new financial disclosures.
Biden’s top aides in the disclosures include Chief of Staff Ron Klain, Deputy Chief of Staff Jen O’Malley Dillon, Senior Adviser Mike Donilon, the White House coronavirus response coordinator Jeffrey Zients and the director of the National Economic Council, Brian Deese.
These disclosures show that many of the president’s closest collaborators have deep ties to the business world and have made more money in their previous business careers than previously known.
These disclosures were provided by the White House to CNBC in the early hours of Saturday morning after requesting the documents the day before. None of these positions were confirmed by the Senate. Many of these advisers have previous links to the Biden campaign or the administration of former President Barack Obama.
A White House spokesman did not send any follow-up requests for comment.
Deese was previously the global head of sustainable investment at BlackRock before becoming the head of the National Economic Council. While in the investment firm, information revealed by Deese shows that he earned more than $ 2.3 million in salaries and bonuses. Its disclosure also suggests that through BlackRock’s restricted stock plan, Deese could have earned an additional $ 2.4 million.
Klain, who was an executive at venture capital firm Revolution before joining the White House, had a salary of $ 1.8 million. He started the company in 2005.
O’Malley Dillon, who led Biden’s campaign before following him to the White House, was a co-founder of consulting firm Precision Strategies. The firm’s founders are credited with helping re-elect Obama in 2012.
O’Malley Dillon’s new financial disclosure takes a look at the corporate advisory work he did for the firm before coming to the White House. The presentation lists Gates Ventures as a client of O’Malley Dillon while he was at Precision Strategies.
According to PitchBook, Gates Ventures is a venture capital firm founded by billionaire Bill Gates. The current deputy chief of staff of the White House also advised on the Chan Zuckerberg initiative, the philanthropic arm of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan.
Other companies that saw its orientation are General Electric and Lyft. O’Malley Dillon’s deferred compensation and Precision’s separation appear to be above $ 420,000.
Donilon was a managing member of MCD Strategies, a media consulting firm, prior to his role in the White House. His presentation shows that he earned more than $ 4 million while running his consulting firm. Donilon lists the Biden campaign and the Democratic National Convention Committee as two of his clients.
Zients was the CEO of Wall Street investment firm Cranemere before becoming Biden White House chief adviser on the coronavirus pandemic. His financial disclosure shows he had a combined salary and bonus of $ 1.6 million. As a member of the Facebook board, the new report shows that he earned more than $ 330,000.