Following shocking claims of entrenched sexual harassment at ride sharing behemoth Uber, CEO Travis Kalanick quickly reached out to former Obama Attorney General Eric Holder to investigate. This choice should not be a surprise. Numerous ranking Obama officials, along with key staffers in the Hillary Clinton campaign, now work on behalf of Silicon Valley giants. They will no doubt make life difficult for President Trump.
Silicon Valley versus Trump
According to the nonpartisan Crowdpac, employees at tech companies overwhelmingly gave to Hillary Clinton.
Clinton received approximately 95% of donations, with Donald trump garnering just 4 percent. During the hotly contested campaign, Clinton regularly held fundraisers at the homes of Silicon Valley CEOs and founders. But losing the election does not mean Silicon Valley will quietly go away. The hiring of Eric Holder is just the latest example.
Instagram, owned by Facebook, recently hired Kristina Schake to oversee their public communications effort. Schake was the deputy communications director for Hillary Clinton's failed presidential campaign. Demetrios Marantis, US trade representative under Obama, was hired by payments company Square, which is owned by Jack Dorsey, CEO of Twitter. Obama campaign manager David Plouffe was offered a position at Uber.
Clinton aide Chris Lehane is working for Airbnb. That's just the start.
There are several others that have quickly moved on from their roles in the Obama administration or Clinton campaign to lobbying or public relations posts in Silicon Valley. Ryan Metcalf, a former senior analyst for the Obama administration, works with PayPal.
Kyle O’Connor, speechwriter for Obama, works for Facebook. Dan Pfeiffer, assistant press secretary for Obama, works for GoFundMe. The EPA's Lisa Jackson now works for Apple.
A revolving door or something more
Rumors are swirling that President Obama, who once described himself as a "nerd," will soon take a board seat at one or more Silicon Valley companies.
Apple, Google and Facebook have each been mentioned. The question now becomes, why are these individuals being hired? For their skills? Their connections? Or to take an active role in fighting the Trump administration?
