In the latest example of former Obama supporters on Wall Street turning against the administration, Goldman Sachs has pledged more money to Republicans than to Democrats in this year's election cycle. It's the first time the firm has leaned Republican in at least 20 years. (Hat tip to The Street)
Data from the Center for Responsive Politics shows that in every election since 1990 (when the group started keeping records), Goldman has given most of its money to Democrats. This year, though, Republicans got 54 percent of its campaign money, up from 26 percent in 2006. With about $1.7 million in total funds (to Republicans and Democrats combined) donated so far, Goldman is, as usual, leading the Wall Street pack. Morgan Stanley is in second with $1.1 million.
Goldman isn't alone. As New York Times scribe Andrew Ross Sorkin noted recently that Daniel Loeb, the hedge fund manager and former Obama backer, wrote a flowery letter to investors in which he complained about the Goldman Sachs lawsuit and blasted the government for "pulling capital and power from the hands of some and putting it in the hands of others."
Billionaire hedge fund manager Steven A. Cohen, another former Obama man, reportedly held a secret meeting with Republican candidates at his Greenwich, Conn., mansion last month.