Former Biden officials corresponded with staff at top universities while still in positions of power and later secured plum roles at those institutions, according to documents first obtained by the Functional Government Initiative (FGI), a watchdog organization.
David Turk, former DOE Deputy Secretary, and Shalanda Baker, former Director of the Department of Energyâs (DOE) Office of Energy Justice and Equity, had a history of communications and arranging meetings with their current employers while still in the Biden administration, emailsreviewed by the Daily Caller News Foundation show.
Turk landed at Columbiaâs School of International and Public Affairs at its Center on Global Energy Policy (CGEP) as a âdistinguished visiting fellowâ in January 2025, after he was messaging and scheduling meetings with university staffers from February to October 2024, according to the documents. In September 2024, the DOE announced that Columbia University was selected to enter award negotiations for a portion of a $68âŻmillion AI initiative. The DOE then obligated $450,000 to Columbia for the AI project, according to USA Spending.gov and Columbiaâswebsite.
The University of Michiganâs School of Environment and Sustainability (SEAS) announced Baker as the âfirst vice provost for sustainability and climate actionâ in June 2024 after faculty members reached out to discuss the position when she was still at the DOE in April 2024, the emails show.
âFGI and others have documented the ever-spinning revolving door between the Biden administrationâs climate and environment focused agencies and offices and outside special interest activist groups,â Roderick Law, spokesman for FGI, told the DCNF. âIt appears there was also a door to elite academia. It never hurts for job seekers to have access to grant money and government research. Call it an attractive value-add.â
Baker told the DCNF that, in accordance with policy, she disclosed her pending employment negotiations at the time and referred the DCNF to the DOEâs Office of the General Counsel. Turk, Columbia, the University of Michigan and the DOE did not respond to the DCNFâs multiple requests for comment.
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DOE Biden Officials FOIA by audreystreb
Notably, several other DOE Biden officials landed cushy positions in âthe swampâ as President Donald Trump returned to the White House, with the former Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm joining the board of a major utility company that received millions from the agency while she was at its helm.
Turk was arranging to meet Jason Bordoff, the founding director for Columbiaâs CGEP, on Feb. 5 and March 8, 2024, and emailed about AI use in the energy sector on July 25, 2024, according to the documents.
Turk emailed Bordoff on July 25 that âweâre doing a ton of work in this space, including on projections of increased electricity demand from data centers / AI over the next several years, how this data center / AI electricity demand fits into whatâs going on more broadly with electricity supply/demand, and how to channel dynamics in the most helpful way possible for national security, economic prosperity and clean energy goals. ⌠Weâd be eager and happy to learn more about all that you and your team are up to.â
Funding opportunities for the AI research grant Columbia later received were announced on February 13, 2024, according to DOE materials.
Bordoff also invited Turk to attend the April 2024 âannual invitation-onlyâ Global Energy Summit at Columbia on February 15, 2024, the documents show. The invitation noted that the Summit was to be hosted by CGEP, under which Turk is now a âdistinguished visiting fellow,â according to the website.
Turkâs response to the invitation was not a part of the documents obtained by the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
The two emailed about potentially meeting up in September 2024 for climate week, according to the documents.
Susan Fancy, associate director of the University of Michiganâs Global CO2 Initiative sent an email and a letter to Baker on March 8, 2024, requesting âsupport from DOE for clean energy and carbon management-related community engagement research,â the documents show.
Fancy also wanted âDOE investment in multi-disciplinary, multi-stakeholder research and conversationsâ about âsocial justiceâ and âenergy justice,â adding that ânumerous experts in communities and academia are ready to help address these issues ⌠their efforts will have substantial social, technical, and financial paybacks,â the emails show.
Fancy continued to tell Baker that sheâs âgrateful for your efforts to be sure that climate imperialism does not take hold,â according to the documents. Bakerâs direct response to the email was not included in the FOIA findings.
Later, on April 23, 2024, the executive assistant of the University of Michiganâs provost sent an email to schedule a time to discuss a position for Baker at the school.
âIt seems the Biden DOE was quite a springboard for political appointees to land in academia,â the FGI said in a statement Monday.
Fancy and Bordoff did not respond to the DCNFâs multiple requests for comment.
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