In his penultimate post at Harpers, Ken Silverstein follows up on his investigation of the paid speaking gigs of David Broder and Bob Woodward.
What emerges shows pretty clearly how people like Broder are "incentivized" to align their interests with those who, for example, have a strong belief in "the destructive effects of the estate tax to families and their businesses."
Speaking gigs lead to sejours at "retreat(s) open exclusively to ... client family members," which lead, apparently, to posh-friendly articles suggesting that what's good for "ultra-high net worth families" (to pick one gig's crowd) is also good for those "small people" whose interests people like Broder can always instantly feel, like an itch on the back of their leg, but higher up.
If this were a novel, the plot would almost be trite (time for a sex scene near the scented Cleopatra Asp Pond in the retreat's back corner). But in real life, it smells like the real deal. A taste:
Last May, Broder was the keynote speaker at a May 19 to 21 conference sponsored by GenSpring Family Offices, “a leading wealth management firm for ultra-high net worth families. With over $20 billion in assets under advisement, GenSpring…is trusted by more than 700 of the world’s wealthiest families to oversee or manage important aspects of their financial lives.” GenSpring is an affiliate of SunTrust Banks, which lobbies congress. The conference, called the “Men’s Retreat,” was held at The Breakers in Palm Beach, Florida. The conference offered “an opportunity for men to learn and network together, attend and participate in provocative and timely meetings covering the gamut of wealth related topics presented and facilitated by key GenSpring experts as well as select guest speakers who are renowned experts in the fields of finance, communication, health, and wealth preservation.” ...How's that for a teaser? The piece isn't long, but it's meaty, and includes some Woodward dish as well. Be sure to click the embedded links if this stuff interests you.
Among the panelists was Patricia Soldano, a lobbyist who heads up GenSpring’s office in southern California and who is president of the Policy and Taxation Group, “an organization that educates on the destructive effects of the estate tax to families and their businesses.” In other words, the conference Broder spoke at was not only hosted by a business with significant interests in Washington, but the group’s lobbying agenda was a notable component of the event.
Broder writes about financial reform and tax policy with some regularity. Last July ...
It's a club; we're not members. Our Betters and their propagandists are.
Silverstein is leaving his Harpers day job to do investigative journalism somewhere other than Washington. It's the Obama–Clinton reflux, as he explains in his farewell. (For one of the most prescient pieces on Senator Obama, click here. It's what drew me to Ken's work.)
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