Barney Frank, co-author of the Dodd- Frank financial-reform law, is among speakers today at a private conference for
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. clients in New York.
Frank, the Massachusetts Democrat who's serving his last term after more than 30 years in Congress, will talk about “Politics, Policy and the 2012 Election,” according to an agenda obtained by Bloomberg News. Michael DuVally, a
Goldman Sachs spokesman, confirmed the agenda's contents. He said the event, which is closed to the media and public, is sponsored by the fixed-income, currency and commodities sales department.
Robert M. Gates, who served as Defense Secretary under President Barack Obama and former President George W. Bush, will speak later today on “Security, Geopolitics and Perspectives from the Front Lines.” DuVally declined to discuss how or if the New York-based company compensated the speakers. Frank won't be paid for his appearance, said his spokesman, Harry Gural.
Wall Street firms regularly invite speakers from business and politics to private events for money managers, affluent investors and corporate executives as they seek to improve relationships.
Goldman Sachs's connections to politicians and other government leaders have sometimes caused controversy, earning it the nickname “Government Sachs.”
The company hired Michael Paese, who was a top aide to Frank on the House Financial Services Committee, to help lead its lobbying effort in early 2009. Frank barred Paese from communicating with the then-Democratic majority on the committee as it drafted the financial-reform bill that affected
Goldman Sachs, among other firms.
‘Nuts and Bolts'
Frank will speak about his career, the current political landscape and the regulatory overhaul that bears his name, Gural said. The speech won't be about the “nuts and bolts” of the legislation, Gural said.
Gates, who left the Defense Department last year, didn't immediately respond to requests for comment made through his former spokesman, Geoff Morrell, and the press office of the College of William & Mary, where he's scheduled to become chancellor.
Lloyd C. Blankfein, 57, Goldman Sachs's chairman and chief executive officer, will introduce Gates at the conference, according to the agenda.
Other speakers at today's conference include Lorenzo Bini Smaghi, a former executive board member of the European Central Bank, and Daniel Och, CEO of
hedge fund firm Och-Ziff Capital Management Group LLC.
David Rubenstein, co-founder of Carlyle Group, is speaking on the panel with Och. Carlyle, a Washington-based private- equity firm, is planning to sell shares to the public.
--Bloomberg News--
