Saturday, January 02, 2021

FAUX OUTRAGE FROM CONSERVATIVE HYPOCRITES
Dem Supporters Blast 'Misogynistic' Criticism of Janet Yellen Speaking Fees: 'How Much Should Women Make?'


Congressional members, political writers and cable TV news hosts jumped to defend President-elect Joe Biden's treasury secretary pick, former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, from a "misogynistic" Friday report that found she collected $7 million in Wall Street speech fees.
© ALEX WONG / Staff/Getty Images U.S. Secretary of the Treasury nominee Janet Yellen speaks during an event to name President-elect Joe Biden’s economic team at the Queen Theater on December 1, 2020 in Wilmington, Delaware. Biden is nominating and appointing key positions to the Treasury Department, Office of Management and Budget, and the Council of Economic Advisers.

Several Democrats and supporters of the incoming Biden administration responded to a Politico report that Yellen collected $7 million in speaking fees in 2019 and 2020. Numerous critics asked "so, how much exactly should women make?," in response to the article and highlighted several male financial leaders who also received exorbitant sums of money for Wall Street and corporate speaking fees.

The report highlighted that Yellen "brought in nearly $1 million" in payment for nine speeches to Citi alone since leaving the Federal Reserve.

If confirmed as Biden's treasury secretary, the former Federal Reserve chair who served from 2014 to 2018 would oversee tech and financial giants like Citigroup and Goldman Sachs, the same firms she reportedly collected millions from in speaking fees.

Some progressives and numerous Biden critics said debate of Yellen's reported speaking fees is justified, and accusations of misogyny over the Politico article are just a primer for mainstream media outlets to soon "go easy" on the incoming Biden administration.

"The people who belittle Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for being a former waitress are the same faulting Janet Yellen for earning $7.2 million. So, how much exactly should women make?" wrote Andrea Junker, in response to the Politico article. That prompted the New York congresswoman's response Friday afternoon.

"Probably an unpopular take but I think it's important the public knows what their public servants' financial & income streams are, regardless of gender or party. We can note how scrutiny gets disproportionately wielded on women, but Wall St ties are a very reasonable to examine," Ocasio-Cortez tweeted concerning gender-based criticism of the article.

Probably an unpopular take but I think it's important the public knows what their public servants' financial & income streams are, regardless of gender or party.

We can note how scrutiny gets disproportionately wielded on women, but Wall St ties are a very reasonable to examine https://t.co/rOHmKazZGn— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) January 1, 2021

Video: Pelosi: Republicans 'in denial' about needs of Americans by blocking stimulus check increase (MSNBC)


Some Washington Democrats, including Oregon Senator Ron Wyden, vouched for Yellen's record and said she is not someone "who pulls punches when it comes to bad actors or bad behavior.

"In the last few years, she has shared her views in a range of forums — congressional testimony, media interviews, speaking engagements, and opinion pieces. She's been fully transparent ... she's spoken at economic conferences, universities and to business groups and financial institutions about her experiences and her views on what we can do as a country to build a stronger economy and increase our competitiveness," said Wyden, ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, in a Friday statement to the Associated Press about moving hearings on her approval through "quickly."

MSNBC anchor Stephanie Ruhle on Twitter Friday demanded Politico "do better," and defended Yellen for simply being "paid market value" for the speaking events.

But Intercept co-founder and journalist Glenn Greenwald defended the report and sought to call out news media reporters he believes are biased in Biden's favor.

"Democrats — including numerous Dem Party-aligned journalists — have spent all day smearing 2 Politico reporters as misogynistic because they had the sexist audacity to report on the very lucrative relationship between Janet Yellen & Wall St., the industry she's about to regulate," Greenwald wrote Friday.

The Friday Politico headline that said Yellen "made millions in Wall Street, corporate speeches" is a line that could just as easily replace her name with numerous former former Fed chairs and current Trump administration members (Biden's old boss, former President Barack Obama, was chastised in 2017 for charging $400,000 to give a single Wall Street conference speech regarding health care).

For four years the President’s daughter profited enormously off her taxpayer-funded position in the White House. Spare me the faux outrage about powerful women being paid equitable speaking fees.— Matt McDermott (@mattmfm) January 1, 2021

"For four years the President's daughter [Ivanka Trump] profited enormously off her taxpayer-funded position in the White House. Spare me the faux outrage about powerful women being paid equitable speaking fees," tweeted pollster Matt McDermott, kickstarting a social media debate of whether the reporting was "sexist" as many had claimed.

Newsweek reached out to representative for Yellen and the Biden transition team Friday afternoon for additional remarks.

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