Where money and politics meet, Rep. Lois Frankel just keeps coming out ahead
Timothy P. Carney
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Lois Frankel, chairwoman of the Democratic Women’s Caucus, sold her shares of First Republic Bank just before the bank’s stock collapsed on the way to being closed by federal regulators. The Daily Caller’s James Lynch reported this on May 1, and it seemed to spur a bipartisan group of younger lawmakers to introduce another bill banning stock trades by sitting members of Congress.
Last year, Frankel (D-FL) bought and sold all sorts of energy stocks — including Southern Company, Duke Energy, and Portland General Electric — while sitting on the energy subcommittee of the appropriations committee.
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Frankel, when asked about her regular trades in politically sensitive companies, always blames her investment manager. “My account is managed independently by a money manager who buys and sells stocks at his discretion,” is her standard comment.
What she doesn’t address is whether her money manager acts on any inside information Frankel may have as a member of Congress or, in particular, as an appropriator.
Frankel has had other ethical issues in the past. In 2016, she pushed a local quasi-governmental institution to hire a specific security firm. That firm’s owner became a campaign donor. The Florida Bulldog told the story:
“Fort Lauderdale’s Downtown Development Authority awarded a lucrative, no-bid contract for its security patrol program to a private guard firm with political ties to Congresswoman Lois Frankel. “Frankel was actively involved in the DDA’s selection last year of Professional Security Consultants …. Frankel introduced the company to DDA officials and later met with a DDA delegation about the matter in 2014…. “Democrat Frankel’s glowing endorsement of PSC and its regional boss, Willie Perez, was used in a marketing PowerPoint presentation to the DDA’s board of directors before it voted unanimously on June 12, 2014 to hire PSC without seeking competitive bids. “Two months after the vote, PSC’s founder and owner, Moshe Alon, began contributing to Frankel’s campaign.”
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In her letter of recommendation, she identified herself as “Representative Lois J. Frankel Member of Congress.”
Frankel seems to have a knack for finding herself where money and politics intersect, and she always seems to come out ahead.