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Jeb Bush Served But Never Voted on Bloomberg Charity's Initiatives

Jeb Bush Served But Never Voted on Bloomberg Charity's Initiatives
(Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images)

By    |   Thursday, 09 April 2015 04:06 PM EDT

Jeb Bush served on a board for former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's charity, which has supported issues on the left including assisting groups like the Sierra Club with global warming programs, as well as working with Planned Parenthood, The Miami Herald reports.

But in spite of his service, it seems less of a political hurdle for the former Florida governor as board members for Bloomberg Philanthropies don't vote on individual projects the organization undertakes.

"It seems clear," noted the Herald story, "that he was brought on the board for his education policy expertise."

Bush's spokeswoman, Kristy Campbell, confirmed as much to the Herald: "Governor Bush was honored to serve on the board of Bloomberg Philanthropies, which does a lot of good work across the world. Governor Bush and Mayor Bloomberg have great mutual respect for one another. While they disagree on several policy issues, both share a passion for improving education in America. As a board member, Governor Bush did not vote on or approve individual projects or programs."

Bush left the Bloomberg board and all others in December in advance of his announcement that he would explore a presidential bid, The Washington Post noted.

The Herald noted, however, that several of Bush's "lucrative" former board placements were garnering headlines in light of his presidential run.

Among them were Rayonier Inc., which faced lawsuits of Clean Water Act violations and where he earned $198,000 in 2013; housing start-up InnoVida, a venture that fell apart under fraud and where Bush had to pay back half of his $470,000 payments earned between 2007 and 2010; and Tenet Healthcare, which supported the passage of Obamacare and where he earned about $2 million from 2007-2014, the Herald said.

Bloomberg's spokeswoman confirmed that as a board member, Bush would not vote on individual project initiatives, which have included giving about $50 million to a Beyond Coal environmental program sponsored by the Sierra Club, according to the Herald.

Bush, noted the Post, has gone to great lengths to distance himself from his work in the private sector as he begins a Republican run for the White House. The Post said that in the 2012 presidential race, GOP nominee Mitt Romney, who has a similar business background "struggled to explain his business background while under attack by GOP rivals and President [Barack] Obama."

In March, Bush sold stakes in two remaining businesses he was involved in, the consulting firm Jeb Bush and Associates and Britton Hill, The New York Times reported.

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Politics
Jeb Bush served on a board for ex-New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's charity, which has supported issues on the left including assisting groups like the Sierra Club with global warming programs, as well as working with Planned Parenthood, The Miami Herald reports.
jeb bush, michael bloomberg, charity, coal, board
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2015-06-09
Thursday, 09 April 2015 04:06 PM
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