James A. Johnson (businessman)
Encyclopedia
James A. Johnson is a United States Democratic Party political figure, and the former CEO of Fannie Mae. He was the campaign manager for Walter Mondale
's failed 1984 presidential bid and chaired the vice presidential selection committee for the presidential campaign of John Kerry
. He briefly led the vice-presidential selection process for the 2008 Democratic presidential nominee, Senator Barack Obama
.
. He is the son of A. I. Johnson, who was a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives
from 1941 to 1958, and who served as speaker of the house in 1955 and 1957.
Johnson received a B.A.
in political science
from the University of Minnesota
in 1966, and a Master of Public Affairs
degree from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs
at Princeton University
in 1968.
. Later he was a staff member in the United States Senate
. He was also director of public affairs at the Dayton-Hudson Corporation (now Target Corporation).
Johnson worked in the unsuccessful presidential campaigns of Eugene McCarthy
in 1968, and George McGovern
and 1972.
From 1977 to 1981 he was executive assistant to Vice President Walter Mondale during the entire Carter Administration
.
In 1981, Johnson co-founded Public Strategies, a private consulting firm, with diplomat Richard Holbrooke
. He headed the firm until 1985. During that time, he was the campaign manager for Walter Mondale
's failed 1984 presidential bid. From 1985 to 1990, he was a managing director with Lehman Brothers
.
An Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight
(OFHEO) report from September 2004 found that, during Johnson's tenure as CEO, Fannie Mae had improperly deferred $200 million in expenses. This enabled top executives, including Johnson and his successor, Franklin Raines
, to receive substantial bonuses in 1998. A 2006 OFHEO report found that Fannie Mae had substantially under-reported Johnson's compensation. Originally reported as $6–7 million, Johnson actually received approximately $21 million.
In the 2011 book Reckless Endangerment: How Outsized Ambition, Greed and Corruption Led to Economic Armageddon, authors Gretchen Morgenson
and Joshua Rosner wrote that Johnson was one of the key figures responsible for the late-2000s financial crisis
. Morgenson described him in an NPR interview as "corporate America's founding father of regulation manipulation".
Also according to Morgenson, he changed Fannie's executive compensation plan to be based on volume not quality and earned over $200 Million dollars while working at Fannie Mae.
Johnson chaired the vice presidential selection committee for the unsuccessful 2004 presidential campaign of John Kerry
. There was speculation that, had Kerry won, Johnson might have been named Kerry's chief of staff
, or Secretary of the Treasury.
since at least 2004. Johnson gave $1,000 to Obama's Senate campaign in 2004. In 2008 he donated the maximum allowed $4,600 to Obama's presidential campaign. In addition, Johnson was a bundler for the Obama campaign, raising between $200,000 and $500,000. He also participated in Obama campaign efforts to recruit former Clinton supporters.
On June 4, 2008, Obama announced the formation of a three-person committee to vet vice presidential candidates, including Johnson. However, Johnson soon became a source of controversy when it was reported that he had received $7 million in cut-rate mortgage loans directly from Angelo Mozilo
, the CEO of Countrywide Financial
, a company implicated in the U.S. subprime mortgage crisis
. Although he was not accused of any wrongdoing and was initially defended by Obama on the grounds that he was simply an unpaid volunteer, Johnson announced he would step down from the vice-presidential vetting position on June 11, 2008, in order to avoid being a distraction to Obama's campaign.
On September 19, 2008, the John McCain
campaign released an ad critical of Obama which linked him to Johnson, stating that "Fannie cooked the books and Johnson made millions. Then Obama asked him to pick his VP."
, Gannett Company, Inc., KB Home
, Target Corporation
, Temple-Inland
, and a former director of UnitedHealth Group
.
Johnson has also served as chairman of both the Kennedy Center for the Arts
(1996–2004) and the Brookings Institution
(1994–2003). He is also a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
, the American Friends of Bilderberg, the Council on Foreign Relations
, and the Trilateral Commission
.
from the National Building Museum
for his contributions to the U.S.'s building heritage during his tenure at Fannie Mae.
In 1997, Johnson received an Honorary
Doctor of Laws from Colby College
, in 1999 he received an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters
from Howard University
, and in 2002, he received another Doctor of Laws from Skidmore College
.
Walter Mondale
Walter Frederick "Fritz" Mondale is an American Democratic Party politician, who served as the 42nd Vice President of the United States , under President Jimmy Carter, and as a United States Senator for Minnesota...
's failed 1984 presidential bid and chaired the vice presidential selection committee for the presidential campaign of John Kerry
John Kerry
John Forbes Kerry is the senior United States Senator from Massachusetts, the 10th most senior U.S. Senator and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He was the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party in the 2004 presidential election, but lost to former President George W...
. He briefly led the vice-presidential selection process for the 2008 Democratic presidential nominee, Senator Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
.
Early life and education
Johnson was born in Benson, MinnesotaBenson, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 3,376 people, 1,451 households, and 880 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,360.5 people per square mile . There were 1,566 housing units at an average density of 631.1 per square mile...
. He is the son of A. I. Johnson, who was a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives
Minnesota House of Representatives
The Minnesota House of Representatives is the lower house in the Minnesota State Legislature. There are 134 members elected to two-year terms, twice the number of members in the Minnesota Senate. Each senate district is divided in half and given the suffix A or B...
from 1941 to 1958, and who served as speaker of the house in 1955 and 1957.
Johnson received a B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
from the University of Minnesota
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
in 1966, and a Master of Public Affairs
Master of Public Affairs
The Master of Public Affairs , one of several public affairs degrees, historically has been a master level professional degree offered in public policy schools that provides training in public policy and the operation of government. Courses required for this degree educate students in public and...
degree from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs
Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs
The Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs is a professional public policy school at Princeton University. The school has granted undergraduate A.B. degrees since 1930 and graduate degrees since 1948...
at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
in 1968.
Early career
Johnson began his career as a faculty member at Princeton UniversityPrinceton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
. Later he was a staff member in the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
. He was also director of public affairs at the Dayton-Hudson Corporation (now Target Corporation).
Johnson worked in the unsuccessful presidential campaigns of Eugene McCarthy
Eugene McCarthy
Eugene Joseph "Gene" McCarthy was an American politician, poet, and a long-time member of the United States Congress from Minnesota. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1949 to 1959 and the U.S. Senate from 1959 to 1971.In the 1968 presidential election, McCarthy was the first...
in 1968, and George McGovern
George McGovern
George Stanley McGovern is an historian, author, and former U.S. Representative, U.S. Senator, and the Democratic Party nominee in the 1972 presidential election....
and 1972.
From 1977 to 1981 he was executive assistant to Vice President Walter Mondale during the entire Carter Administration
Jimmy Carter
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
.
In 1981, Johnson co-founded Public Strategies, a private consulting firm, with diplomat Richard Holbrooke
Richard Holbrooke
Richard Charles Albert Holbrooke was an American diplomat, magazine editor, author, professor, Peace Corps official, and investment banker....
. He headed the firm until 1985. During that time, he was the campaign manager for Walter Mondale
Walter Mondale
Walter Frederick "Fritz" Mondale is an American Democratic Party politician, who served as the 42nd Vice President of the United States , under President Jimmy Carter, and as a United States Senator for Minnesota...
's failed 1984 presidential bid. From 1985 to 1990, he was a managing director with Lehman Brothers
Lehman Brothers
Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. was a global financial services firm. Before declaring bankruptcy in 2008, Lehman was the fourth largest investment bank in the USA , doing business in investment banking, equity and fixed-income sales and trading Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. (former NYSE ticker...
.
Fannie Mae
In 1990, Johnson became vice chairman of Fannie Mae, or the Federal National Mortgage Association, a quasi-public organization that guarantees mortgages for millions of American homeowners. In 1991, he was appointed chairman and chief executive officer of Fannie Mae, a position he held until 1998.An Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight
Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight
The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight was an agency within the Department of Housing and Urban Development. It was charged with ensuring the capital adequacy and financial safety and soundness of two government sponsored enterprises—the Federal National Mortgage Association and the...
(OFHEO) report from September 2004 found that, during Johnson's tenure as CEO, Fannie Mae had improperly deferred $200 million in expenses. This enabled top executives, including Johnson and his successor, Franklin Raines
Franklin Raines
Franklin Delano "Frank" Raines is an American business executive. He is the former chairman and chief executive officer of the Federal National Mortgage Association, commonly known as Fannie Mae, who served as White House budget director under President Bill Clinton...
, to receive substantial bonuses in 1998. A 2006 OFHEO report found that Fannie Mae had substantially under-reported Johnson's compensation. Originally reported as $6–7 million, Johnson actually received approximately $21 million.
In the 2011 book Reckless Endangerment: How Outsized Ambition, Greed and Corruption Led to Economic Armageddon, authors Gretchen Morgenson
Gretchen Morgenson
Gretchen C. Morgenson is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who writes the Market Watch column for the Sunday "Money & Business" section of the New York Times.-Life:...
and Joshua Rosner wrote that Johnson was one of the key figures responsible for the late-2000s financial crisis
Late-2000s financial crisis
The late-2000s financial crisis is considered by many economists to be the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s...
. Morgenson described him in an NPR interview as "corporate America's founding father of regulation manipulation".
Also according to Morgenson, he changed Fannie's executive compensation plan to be based on volume not quality and earned over $200 Million dollars while working at Fannie Mae.
Post-Fannie Mae career
Since 2001, Johnson has been vice chairman of the private banking firm Perseus LLC.Johnson chaired the vice presidential selection committee for the unsuccessful 2004 presidential campaign of John Kerry
John Kerry
John Forbes Kerry is the senior United States Senator from Massachusetts, the 10th most senior U.S. Senator and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He was the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party in the 2004 presidential election, but lost to former President George W...
. There was speculation that, had Kerry won, Johnson might have been named Kerry's chief of staff
Chief of Staff
The title, chief of staff, identifies the leader of a complex organization, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a Principal Staff Officer , who is the coordinator of the supporting staff or a primary aide to an important individual, such as a president.In general, a chief of...
, or Secretary of the Treasury.
Association with Barack Obama
Johnson has been a strong supporter of Barack ObamaBarack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
since at least 2004. Johnson gave $1,000 to Obama's Senate campaign in 2004. In 2008 he donated the maximum allowed $4,600 to Obama's presidential campaign. In addition, Johnson was a bundler for the Obama campaign, raising between $200,000 and $500,000. He also participated in Obama campaign efforts to recruit former Clinton supporters.
On June 4, 2008, Obama announced the formation of a three-person committee to vet vice presidential candidates, including Johnson. However, Johnson soon became a source of controversy when it was reported that he had received $7 million in cut-rate mortgage loans directly from Angelo Mozilo
Angelo Mozilo
Angelo R. Mozilo was the chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Countrywide Financial until July 1, 2008. Condé Nast Portfolio ranked Mozilo second on their list of "Worst American CEOs of All Time".-Life and career:...
, the CEO of Countrywide Financial
Countrywide Financial
Bank of America Home Loans is the mortgage unit of Bank of America. Bank of America Home Loans is composed of:*Mortgage Banking, which originates purchases, securitizes, and services mortgages. In 2008, Bank of America purchased the failing Countrywide Financial for $4.1 billion...
, a company implicated in the U.S. subprime mortgage crisis
Subprime mortgage crisis
The U.S. subprime mortgage crisis was one of the first indicators of the late-2000s financial crisis, characterized by a rise in subprime mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures, and the resulting decline of securities backed by said mortgages....
. Although he was not accused of any wrongdoing and was initially defended by Obama on the grounds that he was simply an unpaid volunteer, Johnson announced he would step down from the vice-presidential vetting position on June 11, 2008, in order to avoid being a distraction to Obama's campaign.
On September 19, 2008, the John McCain
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
campaign released an ad critical of Obama which linked him to Johnson, stating that "Fannie cooked the books and Johnson made millions. Then Obama asked him to pick his VP."
Other memberships
Johnson has been a board member of Goldman SachsGoldman Sachs
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is an American multinational bulge bracket investment banking and securities firm that engages in global investment banking, securities, investment management, and other financial services primarily with institutional clients...
, Gannett Company, Inc., KB Home
KB Home
KB Home is a homebuilding company based in the United States, founded in 1957 as Kaufman & Broad in Detroit, Michigan. It was the first company to be traded on the NYSE as a home builder and is a Fortune 500 company...
, Target Corporation
Target Corporation
Target Corporation, doing business as Target, is an American retailing company headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is the second-largest discount retailer in the United States, behind Walmart. The company is ranked at number 33 on the Fortune 500 and is a component of the Standard & Poor's...
, Temple-Inland
Temple-Inland
Temple-Inland, Inc. is an American corrugated packaging and building products company based in Austin, Texas.-History:-Early Years:In 1893, when Thomas Louis Latane Temple, Sr., founded Southern Pine Lumber Company on of East Texas, Angelina County, timberland...
, and a former director of UnitedHealth Group
UnitedHealth Group
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated is a diversified health and "well-being" company. Headquartered in Minnetonka, Minnesota, UnitedHealth Group offers a spectrum of products and services through two operating businesses: United Healthcare and Optum. Through its family of subsidiaries and divisions,...
.
Johnson has also served as chairman of both the Kennedy Center for the Arts
John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts is a performing arts center located on the Potomac River, adjacent to the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C...
(1996–2004) and the Brookings Institution
Brookings Institution
The Brookings Institution is a nonprofit public policy organization based in Washington, D.C., in the United States. One of Washington's oldest think tanks, Brookings conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in economics, metropolitan policy, governance, foreign policy, and...
(1994–2003). He is also a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
, the American Friends of Bilderberg, the Council on Foreign Relations
Council on Foreign Relations
The Council on Foreign Relations is an American nonprofit nonpartisan membership organization, publisher, and think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and international affairs...
, and the Trilateral Commission
Trilateral Commission
The Trilateral Commission is a non-governmental, non-partisan discussion group founded by David Rockefeller in July 1973 to foster closer cooperation among the United States, Europe and Japan.-History:...
.
Honors and accolades
In 1994, Johnson received the Honor AwardHonor Award
The National Building Museum promotes excellence in architecture, engineering, construction, planning, and design. In furtherance of that mission, the Museum instituted an annual Honor Award in 1986 to recognize individuals and organizations that have made important contributions to the U.S.'s...
from the National Building Museum
National Building Museum
The National Builders Museum, in Washington, D.C., United States, is a museum of "architecture, design, engineering, construction, and urban planning"...
for his contributions to the U.S.'s building heritage during his tenure at Fannie Mae.
In 1997, Johnson received an Honorary
Honorary degree
An honorary degree or a degree honoris causa is an academic degree for which a university has waived the usual requirements, such as matriculation, residence, study, and the passing of examinations...
Doctor of Laws from Colby College
Colby College
Colby College is a private liberal arts college located on Mayflower Hill in Waterville, Maine. Founded in 1813, it is the 12th-oldest independent liberal arts college in the United States...
, in 1999 he received an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters
Doctor of Humane Letters
The degree of Doctor of Humane Letters is always conferred as an honorary degree, usually to those who have distinguished themselves in areas other than science, government, literature or religion, which are awarded degrees of Doctor of Science, Doctor of Laws, Doctor of Letters, or Doctor of...
from Howard University
Howard University
Howard University is a federally chartered, non-profit, private, coeducational, nonsectarian, historically black university located in Washington, D.C., United States...
, and in 2002, he received another Doctor of Laws from Skidmore College
Skidmore College
Skidmore College is a private, independent, liberal arts college with an enrollment of approximately 2,500 students. The college is located in the town of Saratoga Springs, New York State....
.
Personal life
Johnson is married to Maxine Issacs, who served as press secretary for Walter Mondale during his 1984 election campaign.See also
- Countrywide financial political loan scandalCountrywide financial political loan scandalThe U.S. financial political loan scandal in 2008-2009 involved politicians who allegedly received favorable mortgage rates.In June 2008 Conde Nast Portfolio reported that numerous Washington, DC politicians over recent years had received mortgage financing at noncompetitive rates at Countrywide...
- Federal takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie MacFederal takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie MacThe federal takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac refers to the placing into conservatorship of government sponsored enterprises Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac by the U.S. Treasury in September 2008. It was one financial event among many in the ongoing subprime mortgage crisis.On September 6, 2008,...