scorecard
  1. Home
  2. finance
  3. Wall Street just got a powerful reminder of the 'other things' that go with a Trump presidency

Wall Street just got a powerful reminder of the 'other things' that go with a Trump presidency

Matt Turner   

Wall Street just got a powerful reminder of the 'other things' that go with a Trump presidency
Finance3 min read

A couple of weeks ago, Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein, a Hillary Clinton supporter, was asked whether he wished he had backed Trump.

"So, in hindsight, do you wish you had backed the other horse, then?" Joe Kernen of CNBC asked him in an interview at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. "Or do you like more regulation and higher taxes?"

"But there's other things, there's other factors at work here, too," the Goldman Sachs CEO responded.

Yes, there are - and this weekend's events made that clear.

The decision by Donald Trump to sign an executive order barring refugees from entering the US, led to outcry both in Washington and Silicon Valley.

Starbucks responded by committing to hiring 10,000 refugees over five years, thousands of people have protested at cities and airports around the country. One of the largest of Sunday's protests took place at Battery Park in lower Manhattan, a short walk from world's financial capital.

The Wall Street bosses did finally weigh in, too. JPMorgan had to reach out to employees who might be impacted by the order over the weekend, and has set up a hotline for those who think they might be affected. Blankfein, who has been consistent in his concerns over Trump's presidency, sent a memo to staff vowing to minimize any disruption resulting from the order.

Mike Corbat, CEO of Citigroup, said "we are concerned about the message the executive order sends."

The question that remains unanswered is at what point Trump policies become an embarrassment for those who have lined up behind Trump's promise to cut taxes and regulation, or indeed the Wall Streeters who have joined the administration?

Finance is a global industry, and Wall Street firms hire from everywhere.

Wall Street banks also do business around the world. A case in point: Citigroup and JPMorgan recently worked on the sale of $1 billion in bonds from the Republic of Iraq backed by the US Government. Iraq is one of the seven countries impacted by Trump's executive order.

Now, I know what you're going to say. True, Wall Street has traditionally been a Republican stronghold, in the same way Silicon Valley is largely Democratic. And yes, from Wall Streeter's perspective, there is a lot to like about Trump's administration.

They see people they know. They see their share prices rocketing. They see the promise of reduced regulation and lower corporate taxes. For some, it's a sign that it's time to stop apologizing - that greed might be good again.

But those Wall Streeters are now being reminded of something that was lost in the post-election euphoria, as Wall Streeters jumped aboard the Trump train. There is more to life than share prices and taxes.

This is an opinion column. The thoughts expressed are those of the author.

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author.

NOW WATCH: This behavior could kill your chances in a Goldman Sachs interview

READ MORE ARTICLES ON


Advertisement

Advertisement