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[[Image:Erskine-Bowles200px.jpg|left|200px|frame|<center> Erskine B. Bowles</center>]]‎'''Erskine B. Bowles''' is best known for his co-chairmanship of the Simpson-Bowles Commission (or [[National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform]]) and for being Bill Clinton's chief of staff. He receives $40,000 per speaking engagement.<ref>David Dayen, [http://news.firedoglake.com/2012/11/28/bowles-and-simpson-rake-in-40000-per-speaking-engagement/ Bowles and Simpson Rake In $40,000 Per Speaking Engagement], ''FireDogLake'', November 28, 2012.</ref>

==Ties to Pete Peterson's "Fix the Debt"==

The [[Portal:Fix the Debt|Campaign to Fix the Debt]] is the latest incarnation of a decades-long effort by former Nixon man turned Wall Street billionaire [[Pete Peterson]] to slash earned benefit programs such as [[Social Security]] and [[Medicare]] under the guise of fixing the nation's "debt problem."

Bowles is the co-founder, along with [[Alan Simpson]], of the [[Portal:Fix the Debt|Fix the Debt]] campaign of the [[Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget]] (CRFB). He is also on CRFB's board.<ref>Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, [http://crfb.org/about/board Board], organizational site, accessed January 2013.</ref> Yet he has deep ties to the financial industry, which has lobbied heavily on tax issues<ref>Lynn Hume, [http://www.bondbuyer.com/issues/121_199/irs-releases-lobbying-group-amounts-for-muni-groups-spending-1044938-1.html "Industry Groups Spend Millions on Lobbying; States & Locals Not So Much"], ''The Bond Buyer'', October 15, 2012.</ref> and created 10,000 units worldwide to avoid taxes and regulation<ref>Yalman Onaran, [http://www.bondbuyer.com/issues/121_199/irs-releases-lobbying-group-amounts-for-muni-groups-spending-1044938-1.html "U.S. Banks Spawn 10,000 Units Worldwide to Cut Taxes"], ''Bloomberg'', accessed July 22, 2012.</ref> (with Morgan Stanley and JP Morgan Chase in the lead).

This article is part of the Center for Media and Democracy's investigation of Pete Peterson's Campaign to "Fix the Debt." '''Please visit our main SourceWatch page on [[Portal:Fix the Debt|Fix the Debt]].'''

{{about_FTD}}

===Undisclosed Conflicts of Interest===

Bowles is currently on the board of Morgan Stanley,<ref>Morgan Stanley, [http://www.morganstanley.com/about/company/governance/board.html "Morgan Stanley Corporate Governance"], organizational website, accessed January 1, 2013.</ref> and has been since 2005. [[Morgan Stanley]] participated in many of the activities that led to the financial crisis and was given a back door bailout by the Federal Reserve that was worth billions of dollars. Bowles receives $345,000 a year from Morgan Stanley,<ref>Morgan Stanley, [http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/895421/000119312512151028/d303252ddef14a.htm Schedule 14A Proxy Statement], Securities and Exchange Commission corporate filing, April 5, 2012.</ref><ref>Center for Economic and Policy Research, [http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/why-is-it-relevant-that-epi-gets-money-from-teacher-unions-but-its-not-relevant-that-erskine-bowles-gets-350000-a-year-from-morgan-stanley "Why Is It Relevant That EPI Gets Money from Teacher Unions, But It's Not Relevant That Erskine Bowles Gets $350,000 a Year from Morgan Stanley?"], June 28, 2011.</ref> though this is not noted on his Fix the Debt biography and is almost never mentioned in the media interviews he gives for Fix the Debt. He is also an adviser to BDT Capital partners, a Chicago-based investment banking services firm. Bowles was also on the board of directors of Merck — Merck's CEO, Kenneth Frazier, is on [[Portal:Fix the Debt|Fix the Debt]]'s "CEO Council."<ref>Fix the Debt, [http://www.fixthedebt.org/uploads/files/CEO%20Fiscal%20Leadership%20Council%20Membership%201-3-13(1).pdf CEO Fiscal Leadership Council], organizational document, accessed January 2013.</ref> — and of [[General Motors]] in the years preceding its federal government rescue,<ref>Jeff Green, [http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=ayajleq.ajMk&refer=news "GM Director Bowles Is Said to Offer His Resignation"], ''Bloomberg'', April 2, 2009.</ref> and is currently on Norfolk Southern's board<ref>Norfolk Southern, [http://www.nscorp.com/nscportal/nscorp/Media/Corporate%20Profile/#2/ "Norfolk Southern Corporate Profile"], organizational website, accessed January 1, 2013.</ref> —  Norfolk Southern's CEO, Charles Moorman, is on [[Portal:Fix the Debt|Fix the Debt]]'s "CEO Council,"<ref>Fix the Debt, [http://www.fixthedebt.org/uploads/files/CEO%20Fiscal%20Leadership%20Council%20Membership%201-3-13(1).pdf CEO Fiscal Leadership Council], organizational document, accessed January 2013.</ref> and Norfolk Southern lobbies on corporate tax issues and "supports reduction in the corporate tax rate"<ref>Norfolk Southern Corporation, [http://soprweb.senate.gov/index.cfm?event=getFilingDetails&filingID=007863A6-DF87-4373-AC29-C51F24621C7D Lobbying Report], corporate lobbying report with U.S. Congress, July 1 - September 30, 2012.</ref> — and on Facebook's board<ref>Facebook, [http://investor.fb.com/directors.cfm "Board of Directors"], organizational website, accessed January 1, 2013.</ref> (owns 20,000 restricted shares, which increased in value by $114,000 because of a deficit-enlarging tax loophole that he and Alan Simpson refuse to touch).<ref>Facebook, Inc., [http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1326801/000119312512034517/d287954ds1.htm Form S-1 Prospectus], corporate filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, February 1, 2012.</ref><ref>Zaid Jilani, [http://boldprogressives.org/erksine-bowles-personally-made-114000-facebook-tax-loophole-he-doesnt-want-to-close/#.USvOPlpARZU ERSKINE BOWLES PERSONALLY MADE $114,000 FROM FACEBOOK TAX LOOPHOLE HE DOESN’T WANT TO CLOSE], Progressive Change Campaign Committee blog, February 22, 2013.</ref> His wife, Crandall C. Bowles, is on the executive committee of the board of directors of JP Morgan Chase,<ref name="Crandall Bio">JP Morgan Chase, [http://www.jpmorganchase.com/corporate/About-JPMC/board-of-directors.htm#bowles "Board of Directors"], organizational website, accessed January 1, 2013.</ref> whose chief executive, Jamie Dimon, has said he is a "major backer" of Fix the Debt and would "do whatever it takes" to help the campaign.<ref>Zachary A. Goldfarb, [http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/ceos-warn-obama-congress-to-avoid-fiscal-cliff/2012/10/18/6aeb7186-1914-11e2-aa6f-3b636fecb829_story.html "CEOs warn Obama, Congress to avoid 'fiscal cliff'"], ''The Washington Post'', October 18, 2012.</ref> JPMorgan Chase lobbies on corporate tax "reform"<ref>J.P. Morgan Chase Bank, [http://soprweb.senate.gov/index.cfm?event=getFilingDetails&filingID=C1FA35A6-049B-49B7-921E-8DB208CEBB97 Lobbying Report], corporate lobbying report with U.S. Congress, July 1 - September 30, 2012.</ref> and bank tax legislation.<ref>K&L Gates LLP, [http://soprweb.senate.gov/index.cfm?event=getFilingDetails&filingID=4A6D7E48-38D4-4F7D-BB6F-02C6CA7AFBEA Lobbying Report], lobbying firm lobbying report with U.S. Congress for work on behalf of JPMorgan Chase, January 1 - March 31, 2012.</ref> It is also a member of the MFA and American Bankers Association (ABA), which are lobbying against the [[Financial transaction tax|financial speculation tax]].<ref>American Bankers Association, [http://soprweb.senate.gov/index.cfm?event=getFilingDetails&filingID=26EDF5E8-C7AD-4F62-B656-246C8D24926D Lobbying Report], trade association lobbying report to U.S. Congress, July 1 - September 30, 2012.</ref><ref>Managed Funds Association, [http://soprweb.senate.gov/index.cfm?event=getFilingDetails&filingID=162BAFA6-FDE6-4302-A813-A1F17C2850BA Lobbying Report], trade association lobbying report to U.S. Congress, July 1 - September 30, 2012.</ref> Erskine Bowles' Morgan Stanley biography notes that "he has been a Senior Advisor to Carousel Capital, a private investment firm, since September 2001, and served as a Managing Director from March 1999 to September 2001. Mr. Bowles was a General Partner of Forstmann Little & Co.,<ref>Jay McIneryney, [http://nymag.com/nymetro/news/crimelaw/features/9472/ "Other People's Money"], ''New York Magazine'', May 21, 2005.</ref> a private investment firm, from March 1999 to September 2001." Bowles is also a former member of Wachovia's board of directors,<ref>Dean Baler and Eric Hoyt, [http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/cepr-blog/the-erskine-bowles-stock-index "The Erskine Bowles Stock Index"], ''Center for Economic and Policy Research'', September 4, 2012.</ref> as was his wife Crandall Bowles.<ref name="Crandall Bio"/> He is also on the board of Fix the Debt's parent organization, the Pete Peterson-funded [[Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget]] (CRFB).

==Morgan Stanley and Other Wall Street Ties==

While Erskine Bowles was Chief of Staff for a time for President Bill Clinton and attempted to run for office himself a few times in his native state of North Carolina, he has spent most of his career as a financial advisor on Wall Street.

In 2012, Bowles was a senior financial advisor to the private equity firm, BDT Capital. Previously he worked for a series of private investment firms, Carousel Capital LLC , Forstmann Little & Co , although he began his career in corporate finance at Morgan Stanley according to [http://www.forbes.com/profile/erskine-bowles/  Forbes].

Bowles started his career at Morgan Stanley. He later served as a board member of [http://www.morganstanley.com/about/ir/SECFilings/archive/proxy08/noticeandproxy.htm#tx82193_27 Morgan Stanley], a firm that was implicated in all the activities that lead to the 2008 financial crisis, throughout the entire financial crisis.

In 2006 the bank bought Saxon Capital, dubbed the "King of Subprime" loans so that Morgan Stanley could gain access to subprime mortgages and repackage them into complex investment vehicles. When the crash came Morgan teetered on the brink. It borrowed $10 billion from the TARP bailout programs and paid the money back with great fanfare in January 2009. However it was revealed later that the bank was secretly bailed out by the Federal Reserve to the tune of [http://www.bloomberg.com/data-visualization/federal-reserve-emergency-lending/#/overview/?sort=nomPeakValue&group=none&view=peak&position=0&comparelist=&search= $100 billion,] an amount only discovered by a Bloomberg News lawsuit against the Federal Reserve.

Subsequently, the firm doled out millions since to settle claims of  [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/07/morgan-stanley-price-fixing_n_1753637.html?utm_hp_ref=business electricity price fixing] and for [http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-06-05/morgan-stanley-will-pay-5-million-to-resolve-cftc-trade-claims engaging in illegal off-exchange trading].  The trouble never ends at Morgan Stanley,in 2012 they were sued by the ACLU for violating civil rights laws by encouraging a lender to push more expensive and risky mortgages on black neighborhoods in Detroit.

==The Simpson-Bowles Commission==

The '''[[National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform]]''' (often called '''Bowles-Simpson'''/'''Simpson-Bowles''' from the names of co-chairs [[Alan K. Simpson|Alan Simpson]] and [[Erskine Bowles]]; or NCFRR) is a [[Presidential Commission (United States)|Presidential Commission]] created in 2010 by President [[Barack Obama]] to identify "…policies to improve the fiscal situation in the medium term and to achieve fiscal sustainability over the long run." The commission first met on April 27, 2010, but failed to reach the super-majority needed to pass a final plan and trigger a vote in Congress. A chairmen's report first issued in November 2010, then in December is often referenced as the Simpson-Bowles plan.<ref>[http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/executive-order-national-commission-fiscal-responsibility-and-reform Executive Order -- National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform], Feb. 18, 2010. WhiteHouse.gov</ref><ref>[http://www.fiscalcommission.gov/about About the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform]</ref>

The plan contained painful [http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/taxtopics/Bowles_Simpson_Brief.cfm austerity measures] that critics contended would further weaken the economic recovery. The plan called for cuts in benefits for the elderly, veterans, and many government employees.  Most importantly, it would have cut the [[Social Security]] "cost of living" or COLA increase. Reduced COLA would amount to a benefit cut of close to 3 percent for a typical retired worker. Since the median income for households of people over age 65 is just $31,000, this would be a big hit to a segment of the population that is already struggling. <ref>Dean Baker, [http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/sep/10/erskine-bowles-wall-street-influence-washington Erskine Bowles: An Object Lesson], ''The Guardian'', September 10, 2012, Accessed January 7, 2013</ref>

President Obama implicitly called for cutting Social Security by three percent and phasing in an increase in the normal retirement age to 69 when he endorsed the Simpson-Bowles plan. 

On March 28, 2012, Representatives [[Jim Cooper]] (D-TN) and [[Steve LaTourette]] (R-OH) put a bill modeled on Simpson-Bowles, with, according to analyst [[Ezra Klein]], "somewhat less in tax increases," to a vote in the House where it was rejected 382 to 38.  22 Democrats and 16 Republicans supported the bill.<ref>Ezra Klein, [http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/post/wonkbook-house-reaches-bipartisan-deal-to-reject-simpson-bowles/2012/03/29/gIQAfucdiS_blog.html Wonkbook: House reaches bipartisan deal to reject Simpson-Bowles] ''The Washington Post'' - WonkBlog, March 29, 2012, Accessed January 7, 2013</ref><ref>Andrew Taylor, [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/29/simpson-bowles-plan-rejected-house-vote_n_1387601.html Simpson-Bowles Plan Rejected By House], ''The Huffington Post'', March 28, 2012, Accessed January 7, 2013</ref>

==The Commission on Fiscal Responsibility==

In 2010, Bowles co-chaired, along with Alan Simpson, the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, which put forward a deficit reduction plan that generated a great deal of controversy.   The plan included  [http://www.nationaljournal.com/congress-legacy/simpson-bowles-the-budget-plan-everyone-touts-but-actually-hates-20120817 70 recommendations] on raising taxes and cutting programs, but it failed to garner majority support of the Commission. A report was released on December 1, 2010,[3] but failed a vote on December 3 with 11 of 18 votes in favor, with a supermajority of 14 votes needed to formally endorse the blueprint.[4]  FN WIKI In January 2010, that bill failed in the Senate by a vote of 53–46, when six Republicans who had co-sponsored it--joined with 23 Democratic Senators in the Senate at large--nevertheless voted against it.

The plan contained painful [http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/taxtopics/Bowles_Simpson_Brief.cfm austerity measures] that critics contended would further weaken the economic recovery. The plan called for cuts in benefits for the elderly, veterans, and many government employees.  Most importantly it would have cut the Social Security "cost of living" or COLA increase. Reduced COLA would amount to a benefit cut of close to 3 percent for a typical retired worker. Since the median income for households of people over age 65 is just $31,000, this would be a big hit to a segment of the population that is already struggling. <ref> Baker, Dean. [http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/sep/10/erskine-bowles-wall-street-influence-washington Erskine Bowles: An Object Lesson] Accessed 10/15/2012</ref>

==Under Consideration as U.S. Treasury Secretary==

Bowles has made many short lists for replacing U.S. Treasury Secretary Tim Geither in President Obama's second term in office.

Economist [http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/sep/10/erskine-bowles-wall-street-influence-washington Dean Baker] comments: "Erskine Bowles gives us a real trifecta. He used his position as co-chair of President Obama's deficit commission to protect Wall Street. He pockets millions as part of a flawed system of corporate governance that allows CEOs to rip off the companies they run. And he wants to reduce social security benefits for seniors who are already living on the edge."

==JP Morgan Chase==

Bowles' wife, Crandall C. Bowles, sits on the board of directors of JP Morgan Chase. From her bio there: Ms. Bowles has been Chairman of Springs Industries, Inc., a manufacturer of window products for the home, since 1998 and a member of its board since 1978. From 1998 until 2006, she was also Chief Executive Officer of Springs Industries, Inc. Subsequent to a spinoff and merger in 2006, she was Co-Chairman and Co-CEO of Springs Global Participacoes S.A., a textile home furnishings company based in Brazil, until July 2007. Ms. Bowles is a director of Deere & Company (since 1999 and previously from 1990 to 1994) and of Sara Lee Corporation (since 2008). She previously served as a director of Wachovia Corporation (1991-1996).

==Background==

Bowles was elected President of The [[University of North Carolina]] effective January 1, 2006. He has been a Senior Advisor to [[Carousel Capital]], a private investment firm, since September 2001, and served as a Managing Director from March 1999 to September 2001. Mr. Bowles was a General Partner of [[Forstmann Little & Co.]], a private investment firm, from March 1999 to September 2001. He served in the Administration of President Clinton as head of the Small Business Administration and White House Chief of Staff. He was the [[United Nations]] Deputy Special Envoy for Tsunami Recovery with the rank of Under Secretary General in 2005. Mr. Bowles worked at Morgan Stanley from July 1969 to January 1972. He is a director at [[General Motors]] Corporation, Cousins Properties Incorporated and North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company. A graduate of The University of North Carolina, he has an MBA from Columbia." <ref>[http://www.morganstanley.com/about/company/governance/board.html Directors], Morgan Stanley, accessed September 4, 2008.</ref>

==Resources and Articles==

===Featured SourceWatch Articles on Fix the Debt===

* [[Portal:Fix the Debt|Fix the Debt Portal Page]]
** [[Fix the Debt's Leadership]]
** [[Fix the Debt's Partner Groups]]
** [[Fix the Debt's State Chapters]]
** [[Fix the Debt's Lobbyists]]
** [[Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget|Fix the Debt's Parent Group]]
** [https://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Category:Fix_the_Debt_Corporations Fix the Debt's Corporations]
** [[Pete Peterson]]
** [[Peter G. Peterson Foundation]]
** [[America Speaks]]
** [[Simpson-Bowles Commission]]
** [[Alan Simpson]]
** [[Social Security]]
** [[Medicare]]
** [[Medicaid]]

===Other Related SourceWatch Articles===

* [[Morgan Stanley]]
* [[Norfolk Southern]]
* [[Merck]]
* [[JPMorgan Chase]]
* [[Deere & Company]]

===References===
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[[Category:Real Economy Project]][[Category:United States]][[Category:Fix the Debt]]