Change To Win Responds To Principal Financial Group As Treasury Initiates Second Round Of TARP

February 25, 2009 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – CtW Investment Group Director of Value Strategies Michael Garland released the following statement today in response to Principal Financial Group’s claim that they haven’t taken a position on the Employee Free Choice Act.

“In a transparent attempt to rewrite history to qualify for $2 billion in TARP assistance, the Principal Financial Group (NYSE: PFG), issued a statement last night asserting that it has not taken a position on the Employee Free Choice Act. The public record indicates otherwise.

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“Principal disclosed lobbying on the Employee Free Choice Act throughout 2007 and 2008 in six separate reports filed with the U.S. Congress. Principal is also funding opposition to the Employee Free Choice Act through its membership in two leading business associations, the Financial Services Roundtable (FSR) and the Business Roundtable, that are also lobbying against the Act. In fact, Principal’s Chairman, J. Barry Griswell, is on the board of directors of the FSR, which lobbied against the Act in 2007 and 2008 and has made it a legislative priority in 2009.

“As we indicated in our February 23 letter to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, firms that lobby extensively against the interests of taxpayers are undeserving of TARP assistance. Principal is emblematic of the problem. Principal spent $2.4 million lobbying the federal government on myriad issues in 2008, an unusually large amount for a financial firm its size. In addition to the Employee Free Choice Act, Principal lobbied on 355 other Congressional bills in the fourth quarter of 2008 alone.

“The Treasury Department is scheduled to initiate the second round of TARP today. Before Treasury takes up Principal’s application, Principal must convince Treasury and the public that it will no longer lobby against the interests of the taxpayers paying for the Wall Street bailout, whether directly or by proxy through its trade associations.”

Source: Change to Win