Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
Ed Gillespie's lobbying career included work for firms with vast interests in Virginia
Here's @bethreinhard's dive into Gillespie's recent consulting work for big companies w/ state interests #VAGov
Link to tweet
Investigations
Ed Gillespie’s lobbying career included work for firms with vast interests in Virginia
By Beth Reinhard October 19 at 5:35 PM
As the Republican gubernatorial nominee in Virginia, Ed Gillespie has vowed to make health care more affordable and accessible, pledging at a recent debate to “incentivize greater competition in the insurance marketplace.”
But as a private consultant, Gillespie advised Anthem, the nation’s second-largest insurance company, as it pursued a merger last year with Cigna, the No.?3 insurer. Virginia insurance regulators said the merger would raise costs and reduce competition, and a federal judge cited the same concerns when she later blocked the deal.
Anthem is among four companies with extensive interests in Virginia that paid Gillespie between $50,000 and $250,000 last year for consulting services. Anthem, AT&T, Bank of America and Microsoft contract directly with the state government, do millions of dollars of business in Virginia, and lobby to influence state laws and policies. All but Anthem have hired Gillespie on and off for more than a decade, dating to his time as co-founder of one of the most successful lobbying firms in Washington.
If he is elected governor, Gillespie would face decisions in which the public’s interests may conflict with the interests of companies that have paid his firms millions of dollars collectively for lobbying and consulting services — and that could hire him again.
....
“I served eight years in the U.S. Army, I showed up for this country,” Northam said at a debate Oct. 10. “You’ve been a K Street lobbyist in Washington. The only time you show up is when you get paid.”
....
This is the second of two stories examining how Virginia’s gubernatorial candidates could face challenges leading the state because of their financial dealings with companies that have extensive interests there. Yesterday: Ralph Northam’s stock holdings.
Andrew Ba Tran and Alice Crites contributed to this report.
Beth Reinhard is a reporter on the investigative team at The Washington Post. She previously worked at The Wall Street Journal, National Journal, The Miami Herald and The Palm Beach Post. Follow @bethreinhard
Ed Gillespie’s lobbying career included work for firms with vast interests in Virginia
By Beth Reinhard October 19 at 5:35 PM
As the Republican gubernatorial nominee in Virginia, Ed Gillespie has vowed to make health care more affordable and accessible, pledging at a recent debate to “incentivize greater competition in the insurance marketplace.”
But as a private consultant, Gillespie advised Anthem, the nation’s second-largest insurance company, as it pursued a merger last year with Cigna, the No.?3 insurer. Virginia insurance regulators said the merger would raise costs and reduce competition, and a federal judge cited the same concerns when she later blocked the deal.
Anthem is among four companies with extensive interests in Virginia that paid Gillespie between $50,000 and $250,000 last year for consulting services. Anthem, AT&T, Bank of America and Microsoft contract directly with the state government, do millions of dollars of business in Virginia, and lobby to influence state laws and policies. All but Anthem have hired Gillespie on and off for more than a decade, dating to his time as co-founder of one of the most successful lobbying firms in Washington.
If he is elected governor, Gillespie would face decisions in which the public’s interests may conflict with the interests of companies that have paid his firms millions of dollars collectively for lobbying and consulting services — and that could hire him again.
....
“I served eight years in the U.S. Army, I showed up for this country,” Northam said at a debate Oct. 10. “You’ve been a K Street lobbyist in Washington. The only time you show up is when you get paid.”
....
This is the second of two stories examining how Virginia’s gubernatorial candidates could face challenges leading the state because of their financial dealings with companies that have extensive interests there. Yesterday: Ralph Northam’s stock holdings.
Andrew Ba Tran and Alice Crites contributed to this report.
Beth Reinhard is a reporter on the investigative team at The Washington Post. She previously worked at The Wall Street Journal, National Journal, The Miami Herald and The Palm Beach Post. Follow @bethreinhard
