Vance and Walz Scheduled to Address CEOs at This Week's Gathering
The two vice presidential nominees have a history of criticizing elite corporate interests.
TroibNews 
This week, both presidential campaigns are set to present their agendas to America’s business elite. Ohio Senator JD Vance and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz are anticipated to speak at the Business Roundtable, a coalition comprising the CEOs of some of the largest corporations in the U.S. Both candidates have criticized these influential economic figures in the past.
Their upcoming appearances at the Washington meeting, which have not yet been publicly announced but have been verified by PMG, will provide an opportunity for both campaigns to gain backing from prominent executives, a crucial aspect in what polling indicates is a tightly contested race.
According to a spokesperson for Vance, the senator will be addressing the conference on Thursday morning. A representative for the Harris-Walz campaign opted not to comment on the event.
“Continuing our mission of engaging with policymakers on a bipartisan basis, we invited both Sen. Vance and Governor Walz to speak with CEOs at our September meeting, and we are pleased that both accepted,” stated Business Roundtable spokesperson Michael Steel.
Initially, the CEO coalition invited Vice President Kamala Harris to participate in the quarterly meeting, as confirmed by an anonymous source familiar with the arrangements. However, the campaign chose to send her running mate in her place.
Harris remains relatively unfamiliar to many corporate leaders in Washington. Her rapid presidential campaign has focused little on fostering connections with corporate America, a sector now eager to comprehend her policy stances and establish ties with her circle.
The Business Roundtable’s backing could significantly benefit the subsequent administration. The group features leaders from some of the nation’s biggest firms, such as Amazon CEO Andy Jassy, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, and Apple CEO Tim Cook. They invest millions quarterly to lobby in Washington, utilizing a substantial network of bipartisan lobbyists. Several member companies have collaborated closely with the federal government to advance the Biden administration’s initiatives.
However, the coalition can also pose challenges for an administration; it has previously sought to influence lawmakers against parts of President Joe Biden’s agenda, notably when it urged opposition to his signature Build Back Better legislation.
The CEOs have already been addressed by former President Donald Trump, who spoke to them in June and expressed his opposition to taxes on tips while advocating for a reduction in the corporate tax rate.
For Walz, this meeting represents a significant moment to make a fresh impression, as he has not had a presence in Washington for several years. His background as a schoolteacher and veteran stands in contrast to the corporate elite in attendance.
Vance, on the other hand, has long been engaged with prominent business figures. He gained experience as a venture capitalist in Silicon Valley under billionaire Peter Thiel and later with a firm led by former AOL CEO Steve Case, before establishing his own company and pursuing a Senate seat.
Vance is familiar with Business Roundtable events, having previously described his attendance at one in 2018 as a pivotal experience in his political journey. He recounted to The New York Times an incident where he sat beside a hotel CEO who lamented the necessity of raising wages.
“The fact that this guy saw me as sympathetic to his problem, and not the problem of the workers, made me realize that I’m on a train that has its own momentum and I have to get off this train,” Vance said to the Times.
Jessica Kline contributed to this report for TROIB News
Their upcoming appearances at the Washington meeting, which have not yet been publicly announced but have been verified by PMG, will provide an opportunity for both campaigns to gain backing from prominent executives, a crucial aspect in what polling indicates is a tightly contested race.
According to a spokesperson for Vance, the senator will be addressing the conference on Thursday morning. A representative for the Harris-Walz campaign opted not to comment on the event.
“Continuing our mission of engaging with policymakers on a bipartisan basis, we invited both Sen. Vance and Governor Walz to speak with CEOs at our September meeting, and we are pleased that both accepted,” stated Business Roundtable spokesperson Michael Steel.
Initially, the CEO coalition invited Vice President Kamala Harris to participate in the quarterly meeting, as confirmed by an anonymous source familiar with the arrangements. However, the campaign chose to send her running mate in her place.
Harris remains relatively unfamiliar to many corporate leaders in Washington. Her rapid presidential campaign has focused little on fostering connections with corporate America, a sector now eager to comprehend her policy stances and establish ties with her circle.
The Business Roundtable’s backing could significantly benefit the subsequent administration. The group features leaders from some of the nation’s biggest firms, such as Amazon CEO Andy Jassy, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, and Apple CEO Tim Cook. They invest millions quarterly to lobby in Washington, utilizing a substantial network of bipartisan lobbyists. Several member companies have collaborated closely with the federal government to advance the Biden administration’s initiatives.
However, the coalition can also pose challenges for an administration; it has previously sought to influence lawmakers against parts of President Joe Biden’s agenda, notably when it urged opposition to his signature Build Back Better legislation.
The CEOs have already been addressed by former President Donald Trump, who spoke to them in June and expressed his opposition to taxes on tips while advocating for a reduction in the corporate tax rate.
For Walz, this meeting represents a significant moment to make a fresh impression, as he has not had a presence in Washington for several years. His background as a schoolteacher and veteran stands in contrast to the corporate elite in attendance.
Vance, on the other hand, has long been engaged with prominent business figures. He gained experience as a venture capitalist in Silicon Valley under billionaire Peter Thiel and later with a firm led by former AOL CEO Steve Case, before establishing his own company and pursuing a Senate seat.
Vance is familiar with Business Roundtable events, having previously described his attendance at one in 2018 as a pivotal experience in his political journey. He recounted to The New York Times an incident where he sat beside a hotel CEO who lamented the necessity of raising wages.
“The fact that this guy saw me as sympathetic to his problem, and not the problem of the workers, made me realize that I’m on a train that has its own momentum and I have to get off this train,” Vance said to the Times.
Jessica Kline contributed to this report for TROIB News
