The brother of a top adviser to President Joe Biden has lobbied the White House on behalf of General Motors, CNBC reports.
Jeff Ricchetti, the brother of White House counselor Steve Ricchetti, was paid $60,000 to lobby the White House National Security Council on “issues related to China,” according to lobbying disclosures obtained by CNBC.
The National Security Council is chaired by Biden himself and is part of the Executive Office of the President. Its meetings are sometimes attended by the vice president, secretary of State, secretary of Treasury, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the director of national intelligence, and other senior officials.
CNBC previously reported that Ricchetti had lobbied the Executive Office of the President on behalf of health care companies.
Steve Ricchetti has recused himself from any discussions involving his brother or businesses he lobbies for.
Ricchetti downplays:
Jeff Ricchetti told CNBC that he no longer lobbies the White House Office but did not respond to questions about who he talked to and what he was lobbying on.
“There are several ways Ricchetti can access the White House without going through the White House Office, including the National Security Council,” according to the report.
GM did not address what he did for them either.
“Jeff Ricchetti among other lobbyists that are registered to advocate on our behalf help GM to advocate for policies that support our customers, dealers and employees, help strengthen our manufacturing presence in the United States and advance our vision of a world with zero crashes, zero emissions and zero congestion,” the company told CNBC.
Ethics experts condemn:
“Jeff Ricchetti isn’t a government official, so Steve Ricchetti can’t control him, but he could at least publicly ask him to stop lobbying the Executive Office of the President,” former White House ethics chief Walter Shaub told CNBC. “That’s probably too much to hope for from a man who appears to have turned this administration into an employment agency for his offspring, though.”
Steve Ricchetti’s son was also hired by the Biden administration.
“What these people are doing makes it harder to get the public to care about government ethics. Shoot, it makes it harder to convince them that such a thing can even exist. Thanks for that, Ricchettis. Hope you enjoy the money,” Shaub said.
