More “Cause for Concern” After Temporary Senator Kelly Loeffler Assigned to Committee Overseeing Regulator for Her Husband’s Company

Mega-Donor Loeffler’s Swearing-In Plagued By Growing “Minefield” of Ethical Conflicts of Interest As New Polls Show “Challenges Ahead”

Kelly Loeffler’s first week in office has been anything but a victory lap, with new polling showing her underwater with independents and struggling with Republicans as voters continue to reject the political mega-donor who bought herself a temporary U.S. Senate seat. Meanwhile, her sprawling “minefield” of potential ethical conflicts of interest continues to grow, with the Wall Street Journal revealing that Loeffler will “help oversee one of [her husband’s] company’s main federal regulators” — creating more “cause for concern” according to one expert and laying the groundwork for yet another glaring conflict of interest.

Read more about Kelly Loeffler’s growing list of ethical conflicts of interest as she struggles with Georgia voters:

Wall Street Journal: Senator Whose Spouse Runs Major Exchange to Help Oversee Regulator

• A new U.S. senator whose spouse both runs and owns a minority stake in a major exchange operator will help oversee one of the company’s main federal regulators, setting up a potential conflict of interest.

• Republican leadership assigned interim Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R., Ga.), whose husband, Jeffrey Sprecher, is chairman and chief executive of Intercontinental Exchange Inc., to serve on the Senate Agriculture Committee.

• The committee oversees the federal Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which regulates markets for derivatives that trade on ICE exchanges. The committee also oversees agriculture, logging, forestry and nutrition programs.

• Gregory Gelzinis, a policy analyst at the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank, called her committee assignment “a cause for concern.”

• “It’s particularly important for her to either say that she’ll be recusing herself from that piece of the ag committee’s jurisdiction or providing some sort of clear commitment to the public that this isn’t going to get in the way of her conducting official business,” he said.

• Ms. Loeffler’s appointment comes at a time when the agriculture committee is working on legislation to reauthorize the CFTC. The committee’s oversight functions also include approving nominations for CFTC commissioners.

• According to its annual report, a number of ICE’s exchanges are “subject to extensive regulation by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.” In addition to day-to-day oversight and enforcement, the CFTC’s rule-making agenda can have a major impact on the company’s operations.

OpenSecrets DC: 

CNBC: New Sen. Kelly Loeffler will help oversee agency that regulates her husband’s company

• After becoming a U.S. senator this week, Kelly Loeffler won assignment to a committee that oversees the agency in charge of regulating her husband’s business, setting the grounds for a potential conflict of interest.

• Loeffler’s husband, Jeffrey Sprecher, is CEO of Intercontinental Exchange, which is regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and owns the New York Stock Exchange. The Senate Agriculture Committee, which Loeffler joined following her Senate confirmation, oversees that agency.

• ICE’s annual report says it’s “subject to extensive regulation by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.”

• Loeffler’s office did not respond to a request for comment from CNBC asking about a potential conflict of interest.

• Loeffler was sworn in as a senator on Monday, succeeding Sen. Johnny Isakson, who retired on Dec 31. She was appointed by Republican Gov. Brian Kemp in December in defiance of President Donald Trump, who had pressed Kemp to appoint Rep. Doug Collins to the seat.

• Loeffler will serve in the role until a special election is held in November 2020 when she will have to win the vote. Collins has not ruled out the possibility of running for the seat at that time.

POLITICO Influence:

Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s The Jolt:

• A pair of polls conducted in December but released on Tuesday point to challenges ahead for Georgia’s new U.S. senator.

• A Mason-Dixon poll found no consensus on Gov. Brian Kemp’s pick of Kelly Loeffler for the vaunted seat, showing that roughly one-third of voters approve of the appointment and about 29% disapprove. A plurality of 36% had no opinion.

• A survey of Republican voters by Public Policy Polling dug a little deeper. It found that roughly 20% of voters had a favorable opinion of Loeffler, 20% had an unfavorable opinion of her — and nearly 60% weren’t sure.

• Asked the same question about U.S. Rep. Doug Collins, her top potential GOP rival, nearly two-thirds of Republican voters have a favorable opinion and only 6% have an unfavorable view.

• In a hypothetical head-to-head matchup, the Gainesville congressman bested Loeffler by a 56-16% margin.

###