Wikileaks: GM CEO Mary Barra Was Shortlisted by Clinton for VP Nomination

Matt Posky
by Matt Posky

General Motors CEO Mary Barra was under consideration to be Hillary Clinton’s running mate. Barra’s name, along with the names of 39 other candidates for the vice presidency, were found in a hacked email released today by WikiLeaks.

It’s an interesting choice as Barra has never held any political office, though she was commended for her handling of GM’s ignition switch recall fiasco, which helped stem the tide of negative public perception toward GM.

Despite some business ties to General Motors, Clinton has no direct connections to Barra.

In February 2010, the General Motors Foundation announced a donation of 30 pickup trucks, valued at $684,455, to the Clinton Foundation. General Motors Corporation also contributed between $50,000 and $100,000 to Clinton’s Foundation directly. The democratic presidential nominee delivered a speech at a GM plant in Uzbekistan the following year. Clinton voted to approve the automotive bailout in 2008.

The leaked email, dated March 17 of this year, named Barra alongside other noteworthy business executives, including Michael Bloomberg, Bill Gates, and Apple’s Tim Cook.

It’s not known if Barra sought to be involved with Clinton’s campaign or was even aware of her inclusion on the list before it was leaked.

[Image: General Motors]

Matt Posky
Matt Posky

A staunch consumer advocate tracking industry trends and regulation. Before joining TTAC, Matt spent a decade working for marketing and research firms based in NYC. Clients included several of the world’s largest automakers, global tire brands, and aftermarket part suppliers. Dissatisfied with the corporate world and resentful of having to wear suits everyday, he pivoted to writing about cars. Since then, that man has become an ardent supporter of the right-to-repair movement, been interviewed on the auto industry by national radio broadcasts, driven more rental cars than anyone ever should, participated in amateur rallying events, and received the requisite minimum training as sanctioned by the SCCA. Handy with a wrench, Matt grew up surrounded by Detroit auto workers and managed to get a pizza delivery job before he was legally eligible. He later found himself driving box trucks through Manhattan, guaranteeing future sympathy for actual truckers. He continues to conduct research pertaining to the automotive sector as an independent contractor and has since moved back to his native Michigan, closer to where the cars are born. A contrarian, Matt claims to prefer understeer — stating that front and all-wheel drive vehicles cater best to his driving style.

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  • TomHend TomHend on Oct 18, 2016

    Question: How much did Russia donate to the Clinton Foundation? Answer : See the NY Times http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/24/us/cash-flowed-to-clinton-foundation-as-russians-pressed-for-control-of-uranium-company.html?_r=1

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    • ToddAtlasF1 ToddAtlasF1 on Oct 19, 2016

      @Xeranar The number of things that don't mean anything to you is as vast as the world outside of George Soros' script.

  • Art Vandelay Art Vandelay on Oct 18, 2016

    Well there is precedent...I mean Robert McNamara was pulled from Ford to serve as SECDEF and he did a bang up job with that whole Vietnam thing!

    • Paragon Paragon on Oct 20, 2016

      Yes, it's my understanding McNamara had an excellent reputation before he got involved in the Viet Nam conflict. Which was stirred up by our own CIA, you might know.

  • RS RS on Oct 19, 2016

    It could have been great experience for Barra...she would learn a lot about covering up issues from Hillary.

  • Domestic Hearse Domestic Hearse on Oct 19, 2016

    Given Hill's proclivities, I'd think she'd lean more toward Melody Lee than Mary Barra.

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