Written by Will Seykora
Jennifer Granholm, Joe Biden’s Secretary of Energy, is set to make millions of dollars in the coming weeks. How? Through stock options held in a battery tech and electric vehicle company she used to be a board member for, called Proterra. Joe Biden recently took a virtual tour of Proterra and praised the CEO and staff for their dedication to electric vehicles. On top of this, Kamala Harris toured a partner of Proterra despite the hundreds of other companies that manufacture batteries and electric vehicle technology.
Proterra is not a public company yet, meaning the shares that Granholm owns are extremely underpriced and with the Biden administration showing clear favoritism, Granholm is going to become yet another example of a Democrat politician profiting from the “climate crisis.” Despite signing an ethics agreement early in February in which she promised to divest her options in the company within 180 days, Granholm has yet to do so. With Proterra planning on going public in the first half of 2021 time is running out for Granholm if she wants to back up her vow not to “participate personally and substantially in any particular matter that to [her] knowledge has a direct and predictable effect on the financial interests of Proterra.” Granholm has proven over and over again that she has no plans to follow her vow after awarding $19 million for the production of materials used in a “clean energy economy,” which does in fact, include electric vehicles and batteries.
Now everyone agrees this already seems shady enough, but it gets better. The 2012 STOCK Act prevents federal officials from participating in Initial Public Offerings, which is what Proterra would be doing if they took a normal route to go public. However, they chose a lesser-known and lesser regulated maneuver, merging with a special purpose acquisition company, otherwise known as a SPAC. This leaves a lot of room for Granholm to get off without even a slap on the wrist. So when you really think about it, is Joe Biden actually pushing his Jobs Act for the benefit of America? Or is he helping friends line their pockets?
Photo via Justin Sullivan, Getty Images
