A new damning report by Bloomberg exposed Connecticut hedge fund multi-millionaire David McCormick’s deep ties to the Chinese military industrial complex during his tenure as CEO of Bridgewater Associates, the world’s largest hedge fund. The report details investments totaling at least $230 million––which included pension funds from working Pennsylvanians––in companies that were sanctioned by President Biden and former President Donald Trump.
End Citizens United President Tiffany Muller issued the following statement in response to these revelations:
“David McCormick is as spineless as they come. All that tough talk on China is just a ruse to cover up his deep ties to the Chinese military industrial complex that made him fabulously wealthy. Using hard-earned pension funds from Pennsylvanians to bolster the Chinese military machine is a slap to the face of working families and undermines our national security.”
Bloomberg Law: GOP’s McCormick Led Bridgewater During China Military Investment
Jonathan Tamari
04/12/2024
Key Sections:
-
US Senate candidate David McCormick led Bridgewater Associates as the hedge fund steered millions of dollars of investments into Chinese companies that produce fighter jets, bombers, planes equipped to jam enemy radars, and the country’s first domestically built aircraft carrier, according to documents analyzed by Bloomberg Government.
-
McCormick — the Republican challenger in a critical contest in Pennsylvania— has long faced attacks over Bridgewater’s holdings in China. But previously unreported disclosures show new details of investments tied to its military and could undercut his attempts to cast himself as a China hawk in his campaign against Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.).
-
But during his years as Bridgewater’s co-CEO or CEO its hedge funds held stock in at least 20 Chinese firms that were subsequently sanctioned by Presidents Donald Trump or Joe Biden for being part of the country’s military-industrial complex or surveillance efforts. The sanctions barred Americans from buying or selling publicly traded securities in the targeted companies.
-
Bridgewater’s investments with those companies — at one point worth at least $230 million — are outlined in filings with the US Department of Labor.
-
Bridgewater funds also held millions of dollars more in subsidiaries whose state-owned parent companies are among China’s leading producers of military aircraft, naval warships, missiles and nuclear power. Several have been listed by China’s government as among the most critical to the country’s strategic and economic interests, and were also hit with US sanctions after being added to the Chinese Military Industrial Complex List.
-
The firm’s ties to China have become a glaring vulnerability — and have drawn new scrutiny as he’s become the presumptive nominee in one of a handful of races expected to decide control of the Senate.
-
Worries about China are especially potent in Pennsylvania, where the state’s proud manufacturing base has eroded and blue-collar workers bristle at the notion of executives pursuing overseas profits at any cost.
-
When McCormick left Bridgewater to run for US Senate in 2022, Republican rivals hammered him on the issue.
-
“David McCormick is lying about holding China accountable,” said TaNisha Cameron, a spokesperson for Pennsylvania’s Democratic Party. “McCormick only looks out for his own bottom line — and he has shown that Pennsylvanians can’t trust him.”
###