David McCormick, the likely Republican Senate nominee in Pennsylvania, helped open up China to U.S. investment when he was an official in the George W. Bush administration. Then, as a hedge fund manager, McCormick made mucho money from the same changes he lobbied for. Via HuffPost:
What’s more, he is now railing against politicians who were too eager to open up trade to China, including through certain kinds of U.S. investments..
“To put it bluntly, China poses the greatest threat to our security and our well-being since the end of World War II,” McCormick said while rolling out his China policy agenda in December. “And our nation’s leaders, including career politicians like Pennsylvania’s Senator Bob Casey, have gotten China wrong for more than two decades.”
McCormick is taking on three-term Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) in a battle that could help determine control of the Senate in November. A loss for Casey on a Senate map already tilted against Democrats would virtually ensure a Republican takeover of Congress’ upper chamber.
So McCormick accuses Bob Casey of being soft on China, while he worked to open up investment opportunities in China for American financial firms. He not only helped meld the two countries’ economies in a way many American politicians now regret, but also benefited him personally in his later role as president and CEO of a massive hedge fund.