President Donald Trump plans on adding another Goldman Sachs veteran to his administration, saying Tuesday that he will nominate James Donavan, the acting managing director of Goldman, as his deputy treasury secretary.
Donavan would become the third major Goldman veteran to join the administration straight out of Wall Street. Former Goldman Chief Operating Officer Gary Cohn, who is now the director of the White House National Economic Council, and Dina Powell, who is now the White House's senior counselor for economic initiatives, were on Goldman payroll when they accepted rolls in the Trump White House. Other Goldman alums include Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon.
Despite the "drain the swamp" rhetoric during the campaign, Trump had a complicated relationship with Wall Street. He was, at times, a fierce critic of the banks, slamming rival Hillary Clinton for her paid speeches in front of Goldman Sachs. But he also sought to relieve the burdens of regulation on Wall Street, pledging to roll back legislation, such as Dodd-Frank, that he said impeded certain banking practices.
“Jim is smart, extremely versatile and as hard-working as they come,” Jake Siewert, head of communications at Goldman Sachs, told The Washington Post. “He will be an invaluable asset to the economic team.”
Earlier this year, Goldman Sachs reported an almost fourfold increase in its quarterly profit due to, in large part, the increase in trading that has occurred since Trump defeated Clinton in the 2016 presidential election.
The Trump administration introduced its budget proposal for the next fiscal year on Thursday.
Shares