Democratic consultant John Podesta is back in the swamp after being tapped by the Biden administration to manage a multibillion-dollar climate investment fund. As the president’s clean energy adviser, he will be responsible for deciding to whom the $370 billion in funding will go. As is typically the case with government initiatives such as this, the warning signs of an ethical quagmire are already on the horizon.
John Podesta Will Dole Out the Cash
Podesta’s job will be to allocate hundreds of billions of dollars in federal subsidies to companies producing electric vehicles, wind farms, batteries, and other forms of clean energy technology. He is tasked with minimizing waste and fraud in the distribution of the funds – which he may find more easily said than done.
The New York Times noted:
“The internal watchdog at the Department of Energy, one of several agencies that is receiving an influx of money under the Inflation Reduction Act, has already warned that her office does not have enough resources to properly monitor all the programs that will be created.”
The Department of Energy will grow from $45.3 billion to over $100 billion in funding and $336 billion in loan authority. Another piece of legislation will grant an additional $30.5 billion to the agency.
Some Conflicting Interests?
Bloated budget aside, there seems to be another eyebrow-raising issue with Podesta’s new position as energy investment czar. In October, he met with Galvanize Climate Solutions, a green energy investment firm founded by billionaire Tom Steyer and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, to discuss who should receive the subsidies.
The problem?
Podesta previously worked with the firm as an advisor from December 2021 to August 2022, according to financial disclosures reviewed by the Washington Free Beacon. Galvanize paid the consultant $84,000 in fees. “Ethics watchdogs say Podesta hasn’t technically violated any laws but hosting his former employer at the meeting was ethically dubious,” the report noted.
John Podesta (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
Michael Chamberlain, director of Protect the Public’s Trust, told The Beacon that this is a case of “sophisticated players checking the necessary boxes to avoid clear violations while still appearing to advance the interests of former employers and clients.”
What is also telling is Steyer’s reaction to the news that his old pal would be heading up the fund. He said John Podesta was the right pick to “champion” the investment fund and later indicated that the initiative was a “transformative, revolutionary, unprecedented” opportunity for the clean energy industry.
Biden’s pick also worked with the HJW Foundation, an organization founded by Swiss Billionaire Hansjorg Wyss, who has “donated hundreds of millions of dollars to leftist groups,” according to the Free Beacon. Podesta has not disclosed the exact amount he has received from the group, but he did list it as a source of income exceeding $5,000.
This issue will likely fly under the radar as the nation’s attention is focused primarily on economic concerns. However, it could be an indicator that these problems will persist if the president and his administration are doubling down on green energy rather than seeking a solution that would make the country more independent. And, of course, they almost certainly are. The White House is desperate to show that this avenue will pay off for everyday Americans in the future.
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