Barack Obama has long decried the corrupting influence of money in politics. As a candidate, he ran against lobbyists and the pay-for-play culture of Washington. As president, he has continued to hammer the theme, most recently in his impassioned attacks on the Supreme Court’s ruling in
Citizens United v Federal Election Commission.
Given this, it’s a little surprising to learn that Obama has not only embraced the sordid money-driven culture of DC, but actually outdone his predecessors. An
analysis by the American Foreign Service Association [1], for example, found that Obama has stuffed the diplomatic corps with more political appointees (i.e., cronies) than any president in the past 40 years. Only a year into the administration, close of half of the president’s biggest donors already have federal jobs.
Below is a list of Obama campaign bundlers
and the taxpayer-funded positions they’ve received:
The Big Changers’ Club ($500,000+)
Avant, Nicole (Los Angeles, CA)
Position: Ambassador to the BahamasBarzun, Matthew (Louisville, KY)
Position: Ambassador to SwedenBeyer, Don (Alexandria, VA)
Position: Nominated to Ambassador to Switzerland and LiechtensteinBleich, Jeff (Piedmont, CA)
Position: Ambassador to AustraliaDanzig, Richard (Washington, DC)
Position: Member, Defense Policy BoardDonahoe, Eileen Chamberlain (Washington, DC)
Position: Nominated to Ambassador to UN Human Rights CouncilEacho, William (Bethesda, MD)
Position: Ambassador to AustriaForester, Christine (San Diego, CA)
Position: Member, Presidential Committee on the Arts and HumanitiesGenachowski, Julius (Washington, DC)
Position: FCC ChairmanGips, Don (Boulder, CO)
Position: Ambassador to South AfricaGutman, Howard (Washington, DC)
Position: Ambassador to BelgiumHarris, Scott (Washington, DC)
Position: General Counsel, Department of EnergyKatz, Allan (Tallahassee, FL)
Position: Nominated to Ambassador to PortugalKennard, William (Washington, DC)
Position: Ambassador to the European UnionOreck, Bruce (Boulder, CO)
Position: Nominated to Ambassador to FinlandOverton, Spencer (Chevy Chase, MD)
Position: Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Office of Legal PolicyPerrelli, Tom (Arlington, VA)
Position: Assistant Attorney GeneralRivkin, Charlie (Los Angeles, CA)
Position: Ambassador to France and MonacoRoos, John (Hillsborough, CA)
Position: Ambassador to JapanSanchez, Frank (Tampa, FL)
Position: Undersecretary of International TradeSolomont, Alan (Boston, MA)
Position: Ambassador to SpainSpinner, Steve (Menlo Park, CA)
Position: Loan Programs Advisor, Department of EnergyStroum, Cynthia (Seattle, WA)
Position: Ambassador to Luxembourg
West, Tony (Oakland, CA)
Position: Assistant Attorney General, Civil Division
The Yes We Can Crew ($200,000+)
Arriola, Ricky (Miami, FL)
Position: Member, Presidential Committee on the Arts and HumanitiesChun, Marisa (San Francisco, CA)
Position: Deputy Associate Attorney GeneralCohen, Dick (Minneapolis, MN)
Position: Member, Presidential Committee on the Arts and HumanitiesCraig, Greg (Washington, DC)
Position: Former White House CounselEisen, Norm (Washington, DC)
Position: Special Counsel to the President for Ethics and Government ReformFroman, Michael (New York, NY)
Position: Deputy National Security Advisor for International and Economic AffairsHoltzmann, Max (Miami Beach, FL)
Position: Senior Advisor to the Secretary of AgricultureHudson, James (Washington, DC)
Position: Director of the European Bank for Reconstruction and DevelopmentJohnson, Jeh (Montclair, NJ)
Position: General Counsel, Department of DefenseKaplan, Sam (Minneapolis, MN)
Position: Ambassador to MoroccoLamb-Hale, Nicole (Detroit, MI)
Position: Deputy General Counsel, Department of CommerceLevi, John (Chicago, IL)
Position: Board Member, Legal Services CorporationLion, Margo (New York, NY)
Position: Co-chair, Presidential Committee on the Arts and HumanitiesMoelis, Cindy (Chicago, IL)
Position: Director, Commission on White House FellowsOrrick, William (San Francisco, CA)
Position: Counselor to the Assistant Attorney General to the Civil Rights DivisionOvermann, Lynn (Miami, FL)
Position: Senior Advisor, Office of the Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Justice ProgramsPhillips, John (Washington, DC)
Position: Chairman, Commission on White House FellowshipsRediker, Doug (Washington, DC)
Position: Nominated to Alternate Executive Director, IMFRivkin, Bob (Chicago, IL)
Position: General Counsel, Department of TransportationRogers, Desiree (Chicago, IL)
Position: White House Social SecretarySedgwick, Tod (Washington, DC)
Position: Ambassador to SlovakiaStetson, Jane (Norwich, CT)
Position: DNC National Finance ChairSusman, Lou (Chicago, IL)
Position: Ambassador to the Court of St. James (United Kingdom)Sussman, Bob (Washington, DC)
Position: Senior Policy Counsel, Environmental Protection AgencyTchen, Tina (Chicago, IL)
Position: White House Director for Public EngagementWelters, Beatrice (McLean, VA)
Position: Nominated to Ambassador to Trinidad and Tobago
White, Barry (Newton Centre, MA)
Position: Ambassador to Norway
Better Believe It Squad ($100,000 Club):
Adelman, David (Atlanta, GA)
Position: Nominated to Ambassador to SingaporeBansal, Preeta (New York, NY)
Position: General Counsel, OMBFulton, Laurie (Alexandria, VA)
Position: Nominated to Ambassador to DenmarkGoldring, Fred (Los Angeles, CA)
Position: Member, Presidential Committee on the Arts and HumanitiesJarrett, Valerie (Chicago, IL)
Position: Senior advisor to the PresidentJennings, Kevin (New York, NY)
Position: Assistant Deputy Secretary for the Office of Safe and Drug-Free SchoolsLazarus, Eddie (Los Angeles, CA)
Position: FCC Chief of StaffSapiro, Miriam (Washington, DC)
Position: Deputy US Trade RepresentativeSchwartz, Eric (New York, NY)
Position: Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees, and MigrationThummalapally, Vinai (Colorado Springs, CO)
Position: Ambassador to Belize
Wise, Judy (Chicago, IL)
Position: Member, Commission on White House Fellowships
Team Hope ($50,000+):
Jacobson, David (Glencoe, IL)
Position: Ambassador to CanadaKirk, Ron (Dallas, TX)
Position: US Trade RepresentativeLandesman, Rocco (New York, NY)
Position: Chairman, National Endowment for the ArtsMaxey, Ken (Los Angeles, CA)
Position: Deputy Political Director, DNCRice, Susan (Washington, DC)
Position: Ambassador to the United NationsSalzman, Amelia (Bethesda, MD)
Position: Associate Director for Policy Outreach, Council on Environmental QualityYale, Matt (Chicago, IL)
Position: Deputy Chief of Staff, Secretary of Education