On Sept. 23, 1952, Richard Nixon was desperate.
Rumors swirled that she had embezzled $18,000 in campaign funds, and presidential candidate Dwight Eisenhower considered dropping her as his VP running mate. Nixon’s solution?
A bold move to address the public on television.
In what became known as the “Checkers Speech,” Nixon sought to regain the trust of the American public by taking the unprecedented step of sharing his precious money. : a $41,000 home in Washington, DC with a $20,000 mortgage, a $13,000 California home with a $3,000 mortgage, no stocks and bonds, and a small life insurance policy.
He added: “It’s not that much, but Pat and I are satisfied that every penny we have is honestly ours.”
It was enough to bring back Ike and the American people.
Although Nixon’s speech may seem strange today, it confirms an eternal truth: The personal finances of our presidents should be concerned with how we evaluate them.
Today, Americans have a very negative view of political figures.
A recent survey by the Pew Research Center found that 63% of Americans believe that candidates chose their careers to make money.
Furthermore, 80% feel that members of Congress do not separate their financial interests from their work.
These poll numbers are not surprising given the steady stream of politicians caught up in financial scandals.
A candidate’s finances can provide insight into their worth, so it’s a valid question to ask when assessing their suitability to work.
Kamala Harris and being a Good Girl Advocate
Kamala Harris’ finances show the enthusiasm of someone who takes this matter seriously.
The transformation of his finances from his first campaign for senator in 2016 to vice president in 2020 to presidential candidate shows a person whose financial records are not only in order but also and conflict.
Her husband has left his high-paying law practice and partnership.
Harris’s investment portfolio is a diversified ETF (Exchange-Traded Fund) that shows he participates in the financial markets but does not take advantage of any data he can access due to the conditions of home.
He’s not the first presidential candidate to feel the need to be perfect. Calvin Coolidge was a successful lawyer, but for most of his life, he and his wife Grace rented a house because he wanted to avoid conflict and not be seen at the bank.
Even in his later years, when Charles Merrill was approached by the board of Merrill Lynch, he refused a $100,000 annual salary saying that he did not know enough about banking and finance to provide value.
Another indication of Harris’s financial attitude is the fact that she and her husband share a mutual trust.
This consolidates their assets, making them easier to manage than if they were separated.
The slow, steady, non-confrontational approach taken by Harris however has allowed him to build wealth.
However this quiet effort may be mistaken for financial ignorance because many Americans are too impressed with the financial glory – if not the success – of candidates like Donald Trump.
Donald Trump’s Aspirational Lifestyle and Golden Opportunities
One big financial difference between Harris and his opponent is that Trump is the second generation of his family to have great wealth.
His task seems straightforward: preserve what he inherited from Generation 1 (his father) and pass it down to Generation 3 (his children).
This is much easier said than done – when these families are studied, there is a reason for the phrase “shirtsleeves to shirts in three generations.”
It’s no surprise that with his fiscal values and priorities, Trump passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA), which increased the amount we can pass on free of property tax from $ 5 million to $10 million per person plus inflation.
Trump is smarter than Harris about making tax appeals that appeal to affluent voters as we can see with his recent comments about returning the SALT deduction to taxpayers.
Yet we are a nation wary of self-serving politicians, and Trump’s ignorance of his own finances does not play well outside of his own establishment.
His lack of transparency in history can be interpreted by his opponents as perhaps he has something to hide.
Some wealthy presidents have acknowledged that transparency is part of the process.
When Fortune published an article in August 1932 that called “The President’s blessing, “Herbert Hoover was perplexed and embarrassed that his financial information was in the public domain, but he also understood that it was part of the process.
Demonstration of Values
Although the country’s financial policy is created by thousands of people in government, the president’s budget is something under their direct control, so it is a reflection of their values.
With the election fast approaching, any undecided voters should take a good, hard, hard, and serious look at the candidates of various financial backgrounds, and decide who will be the better guardian of our country’s financial health.
Nixon said in his Checkers speech, “That man will be President of the United States . . . it must have the trust of all people.” And nothing builds confidence — even for presidents — like fiscal health.
Megan Gorman is a tax attorney, wealth manager and author of All the money of the Presidents.
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