Third Way: 'Majority of Our Financial Support' From Wall Street, Business Executives
http://www.thenation.com/blog/177569/third-way-majority-our-financial-support-wall-street-business-executiveshttp://www.thenation.com/blog/177569/third-way-majority-our-financial-support-wall-street-business-executivesThird Way's attacks on Senator Elizabeth Warren make the group sound like a stalking horse for Wall Street executives, there might be a reason for that.
At a demonstrated today outside the think tank's downtown D.C. office, Third Way senior vice president Matt Bennett conceded to Progressive Change Campaign Committee (PCCC) co-founder Adam Green that "the majority" of Third Way's donor support comes from the group's board of trustees, most of whom are from the finance sector.
As TheNation.com and others have pointed out, the majority of Third Way's trustees are finance industry executives, many of whom might have a vested interest in using a surrogate to attack Warren. Warren, who Time magazine calls the "new sheriff of Wall Street," has demanded greater regulation of the industry. Many of the trustees listed on the Third Way website hail from an assortment of private equity firms and other investment businesses. Others work indirectly, like Third Way trustee Thurgood Marshall Jr., whose professional website at the public affairs firm Bingham Consulting lists his work as "government relations" on issues concerning, among others, "banking regulations."
Bennett explained to Green that the majority of donors to his group "write us personal checks," so the much of the Wall Street money comes from individuals, not institutions. To be sure, Third Way also counts on other corporate donors. As we've reported, many companies maintain ties to Third Way, which was formed as a bulwark against economic progressivism within the Democratic Party, to advance their interests in Washington. For instance, both Qualcomm and Humana list their donations to Third Way as part of each company's lobbying budget.
Third Way sparked the demonstration by authoring an opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal last week titled "Economic Populism is a Dead End of Democrats." Third Way's Jon Cowan and Jim Kessler explicitly called out Warren's proposals for expanding Social Security through taxes on higher income individuals. Though polls show rampant support for these policies, many critics believe there were ulterior motives for the opinion column. Expanding Social Security would not only end up expanding benefits for seniors, but would also force Third Way's trustees to pay slightly more in taxes.
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I'm sure they have the best interests of the People at heart.
-p
But so much crap's been thrown at me by zombie centrists around here that after a while one's knee jerk reaction is to duck.
It goes all the way back to Obama's election, and when there's a call out, you become the most wanted/hated on this site.
Been calling out his bullshit for the longest time and after a while you get sick of the hate.
What do you do when you throw red meat out for the knuckle dragger's?
-p
maybe I should post that in here
http://www.democraticunderground.com/110220129
Oh never mind.
You've known all along, and we've been there to support you. I'm glad your my voice cause I personally can't stand the hate. I've grown up with it and have PTSD from it, so I can't take it for long. But you, I don't think I've ever seen an angry post from you and if it did happen, I totally missed. Keep it up Manny, your a gem.
-p
But fortunately I suck at expressing myself.
Thanks for the kind words.
