Press Releases

Steve Mnuchin (left) and Rep. Tom Price

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree voiced serious concerns today about President-elect Trump’s latest Cabinet picks. Treasury Secretary nominee Steve Mnuchin is a Wall Street executive who profited from mass foreclosures during the financial crisis, and Health and Human Services Secretary nominee Tom Price would weaken or end federal programs that help tens of millions of Americans access health care. 

“I have serious concerns about the risks both of these men pose to our financial and health care systems, as well as the Maine families who depend on them,” said Pingree.  “Not only was Steve Mnuchin an investment banker at Goldman Sachs while its shoddy products helped tip the economy into recession, he actually went on to profit from the hardest-hit victims of the recession by running a bank that took federal dollars while foreclosing on homeowners. As America continues to recover from a financial crisis caused by the Wall Street’s irresponsible behavior, this is a terrible choice for Treasury Secretary.”

At the height of the financial crisis in 2009, Mnuchin and a group of investors purchased a failing bank in California under the condition that the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) cover losses. The bank went on to foreclose on more than 36,000 homeowners during his time there, while accepting over $1 billion in payments from the FDIC. 

Health and Human Services Secretary nominee Rep. Tom Price has proposed numerous measures to make it harder for Americans to access the health care they need, including: privatizing Medicare, slashing Medicaid rolls, giving insurance companies loopholes to deny coverage, and undermining women’s reproductive health. 

“Representative Price seems more intent on taking health care away from people than providing it,” Pingree said.  “His radical proposals go far beyond repealing the Affordable Care Act, to actually undoing decades-long programs like Medicare that offer care to those who need it most.”