Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) is signaling that President-elect Joe Biden’s nominee may face some difficulties in the confirmation process if they do not disclose their connections to consulting and financial firms.
Cornyn shared a link to a story from The New York Times titled “Biden Aides’ Ties to Consulting and Investment Firms Pose Ethics Test” that detailed several of Biden’s nominees’ links to the investment fund Pine Island Capital Partners and consulting company WestExec Advisors.
The Times story said that a Biden spokesperson vowed the nominees if confirmed, would leave the firms if they had not already done so.
Additionally, the spokesperson said they would sell their ownership stake, and make the “proper” client disclosures.
However, Cornyn took issue with the portion of the story that read, “Mr. Biden’s transition office stopped short of saying that all clients would be disclosed — and ethics rules allow incoming federal officials to withhold the identities of clients if the arrangements are subject to confidentiality agreements.”
Maybe, maybe not. But the Senate is not obligated to confirm anyone who hides this information
— Senator John Cornyn (@JohnCornyn) November 29, 2020
“Maybe, maybe not,” Cornyn said, adding, “But the Senate is not obligated to confirm anyone who hides this information.”
Republicans currently have a majority in the Senate. If they win just one of the run-off elections in Georgia for the state’s two Senate seats, they will maintain control of the upper chamber — and could serve as a veto on Biden’s cabinet picks.
The Times reports that Biden’s choice for secretary of state, Tony Blinken, and Michèle Flournoy who, is believed to be in the running for defense secretary, are co-founders of WestExec Advisors.
Several members of Biden’s transition team have also worked for WestExec.
Additionally, Blinken and Flournoy have also served as advisers for Pine Island, which the Times reports raised $128 million “to finance investments in military and aerospace companies, among other targets.”
Biden spokesman Andrew Bates told the Times, “Joe Biden has pledged the most ethically rigorous administration in American history, and every cabinet member will abide by strict ethics rules and abide by all disclosure requirements.”