Bradford M. Freeman

Bradford M. Freeman
Born Fargo, North Dakota
Residence Brentwood, Los Angeles[1]
Nationality American
Alma mater Stanford University
Harvard Business School
Occupation Investment banker
Employer Freeman Spogli & Co.

Bradford M. "Brad" Freeman is an American businessman and conservative political fundraiser.

Career

Freeman was born and raised in Fargo, North Dakota, and attended Stanford University on a football scholarship.[2] He received an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1966.[2] Upon graduation, Freeman served six years in the National Guard and began a career as an investment banker for the firm Dean Witter Reynolds.[1][2] In 1983, Freeman co-founded an investment banking firm called Riordan, Freeman & Spogli with later Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan and Ronald P. Spogli.[2] The firm was renamed Freeman Spogli & Co. after Riordan's exit. By 2001, the fund controlled over $900 million in assets.[2]

Freeman has also served as a director of Morgan Stanley DW, RDO Equipment, Koll Management Services, CBRE Group, Southern California Edison, and Edison International.[3]

Other activities

Freeman was introduced to George W. Bush in 1979, and the two quickly became good friends.[2] Freeman served on the "Team of 100," George H.W. Bush's group of top fundraisers, and helped raise funds for George W. Bush's campaigns for Governor of Texas.[1] Freeman served as a "Pioneer" in Bush's 2000 presidential campaign, and helped raise millions of dollars for Bush and the Republican National Committee.[2] Freeman also served as chairman of the 2000 Presidential Inaugural Committee.[2] Though Freeman himself did not earn a major presidential appointment,[1] Freeman's business partner, Ron Spogli, was appointed Ambassador to Italy in 2005. [4]

In the 2016 film "Meet the Donors: Does Money Talk," Freeman said that after raising and contributing millions of dollars to George W. Bush's 2000 presidential campaign, he was expecting a government appointment such as "a chance to run the CIA," but Bush instead offered him his cat.[5] According to friends, Bush did arrange for Freeman a membership of Augusta National Golf Club.

Freeman has served on the board of trustees of Stanford University.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 O'Connor, Anne-Marie (30 June 2004). "Party Animal". LA Times. Retrieved 16 October 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Roberts, Roxanne (15 January 2001). "Off the Bench And in the Game". Washington Post. Retrieved 16 October 2015.
  3. 1 2 "Bradford M. Freeman". Bloomberg Business. Bloomberg. Retrieved 16 October 2015.
  4. ↑ Barbaro, Michael (2 July 2015). "Business Ties Made by Jeb Bush as Florida Governor Turned Lucrative When He Left Office". New York Times. Retrieved 16 October 2015.
  5. ↑ "Pelosi tracks the mega-donors to political campaigns". Retrieved 2016-08-21.
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