Saturday, October 10, 2020
For Immediate Release
Contact: Erica González, erica.gonzalez@power4puertorico.com
Trump Floods the Swamp with Appointment of Conflicted
Hedge Fund Lobbyist to Puerto Rico Fiscal Board
After latest attack, boricuas pledge to Remember in November
WASHINGTON, DC – The Power 4 Puerto Rico coalition today condemned President Trump’s appointment of Mr. Justin M. Peterson, who is a managing partner at DCI Group, a communications and lobbying firm that has represented the most reprehensible vulture funds that have taken advantage of Puerto Rico, Argentina and other countries. In addition to financial interests with direct ties to Puerto Rico debt who have worked for years to undermine the economic sustainability and wellbeing of the Puerto Rican people, DCI also continues to represent big oil and other fossil fuel interests that would now have an insider in the unelected Financial Oversight and Management Board (FOMB), or La Junta as it is called in Puerto Rico.
“The appointment of a key player in the financial industry’s scheme to squeeze Puerto Rico out of every last drop of money to pay a legally questionable and un-audited debt, constitutes President Trump’s latest, and potentially most lasting, attack on Puerto Rico to date. The glaring conflict of interest of having the managing partner of a well-connected DC lobbying shop that has represented the same Wall Street firms that pillaged Puerto Rico and have actively attacked its government and people is unacceptable. We call on all our allies to denounce this appointment and reject Trump’s latest affront against Puerto Ricans,” said Erica González, Director of the Power 4 Puerto Rico coalition.
Federico A. de Jesús, Senior Advisor for Power 4 Puerto Rico, stated: “Back when it wasn’t fashionable to talk about Puerto Rico’s debts, DCI was already at work seeking to squeeze Puerto Rico out of money to pay a bank that wound up going under thanks to illegal activity. It was 2013 and this firm worked to collect hundreds of millions of dollars of Puerto Rican taxpayer money that did not belong to Doral Bank, DCI’s client, but that it nevertheless claimed was theirs. Thankfully, the courts sided with the people of Puerto Rico but the damage to the island was done. DCI then went further and worked to block legislation to return Puerto Rico to Chapter 9 bankruptcy; a bill that if approved could have avoided PROMESA and the Junta it set up. DCI also represented Aurelius Capital, which sued to avoid taking a loss during the debt restructuring process currently underway. This severely conflicted individual will now have access to confidential financial information that will be very useful for the clients he will continue to represent, as this is a non-paid position. This appointment is typical, crass Trump corruption and boricuas won’t stand for it. As we say in Spanish, ‘Trump puso el cabro a velar las lechugas’ (Trump put the fox in charge of guarding the hen house).”
“Puerto Ricans in Pennsylvania and all across the U.S. know corruption when we see it. Donald Trump is once again looking out for his Wall Street friends at the expense, once again, of the people of Puerto Rico. To appoint a financial industry lobbyist that has worked for years to cheat Puerto Ricans and profit off of our misery will have lasting consequences for the future of our island. We in the diaspora will not stand by and will demand respect for our loved ones at the ballot box,” said Karen Rodríguez, Director of the People for Puerto Rico, a Pennsylvania-based diaspora group.
Marcos Vilar, Director of the Florida-based Alianza for Progress, stated: “While President Trump continues to say that he is ‘the best thing that has ever happened to Puerto Rico,’ his actions with this appointment speak louder than words. Appointing individuals with clear conflicts of interest who have actively sought to undermine the credibility and livelihood of the people of Puerto Rico is not just beyond the pale but unforgivable. Puerto Ricans here in Florida as well as in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Ohio, North Carolina, Texas and throughout the U.S. will not forget this and all of the Trump administration’s attacks on our families in Puerto Rico.”
“Puerto Ricans in North Carolina and across the country reject Donald Trump's callous abuse of our homeland in Puerto Rico. The President's appointment of an individual who has made it his mission to undercut the island's economy, essential services and deprive it of essential tools for success is the latest in a long string of attacks by Trump against our people. We said presente for Puerto Rico after Maria. We said presente when it was time to kick out an incompetent governor. We are still presente for the island after the earthquakes. And Puerto Rico will be in our hearts as we continue to mobilize our community towards the ballot box in this election,” said Freddy Medina of BoricuActivao’ North Carolina.
“Trump has said he has been the greatest thing to happen to Puerto Rico when he in fact is the worst," said Melissa Mark-Viverito of The Puerto Rican Cultural Center in Chicago. “This latest attempt to drive through colonialism 2.0 in the Island is clear to Puerto Rican voters across the country who will make their opposition known on Nov. 3rd.”
“Puerto Ricans in Action - Los Angeles first came together to oppose the Federal Oversight Management Board in 2016 with the passage of PROMESA. Today, in 2020, we continue to firmly oppose the FOMB, and now, Peterson's appointment. The FOMB's decisions have enacted immense damage to the health and safety of Puerto Ricans. They will only continue this violent trend with Justin Peterson taking a seat on the board. We denounce this appointment and ask our allies to do the same,” said Nicole Hernández, co-founder of Puerto Ricans in Action.
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