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The 2017 Pension Political Power 25: Randi Weingarten

No. 25. Randi Weingarten, President, American Federation of Teacher

By Peter Vasiliev
February 14, 2017
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< 25 Top Pension Power Players

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25. Randi Weingarten
President, American
Federation of Teachers

Randi Weingarten, head of the American Federation of Teachers, is among the most impassioned leaders fighting for defined benefit pension plans. Representing 1.6 million teachers nationwide, the 59-year-old has a big budget and considerable political power behind her, but she’s got good reason for concern: There’s no doubt that she and the teachers she serves will lose influence under Republican President Donald Trump. Since Trump nominated charter school advocate Betsy DeVos (No. 3) to head the Department of Education, Weingarten has been using her bully pulpit to slam DeVos on her charter record and her support for the restructuring of government pensions in Michigan. Weingarten continues to battle hedge funds that manage teachers’ pension investments, calling for institutional investors to shun managers with high costs and those who work against issues important to teachers. — Julie Segal


The 2017 Pension Political Power 25

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1. Andy Puzder
Secretary of Labor

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2. Bruce Rauner
Governor of Illinois

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3. Betsy DeVos
Secretary of Education

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4. Laura & John Arnold
Founders,
Laura and John Arnold Foundation

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5. Steven Mnuchin
Secretary of the Treasury

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6. Wilbur Ross
Secretary of Commerce

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7. Tani Cantil-Sakauye
California Chief Justice

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8. Paul Ryan
Speaker of the House

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9. Anthony Scaramucci
Founder, SkyBridge Capital

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10. Kevin de León
California State Senator and President Pro Tempore

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11. Mike Enzi
Chairman, Senate Subcommittee on Primary Health and Retirement Security

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12. Steve Sweeney
President,
New Jersey State Senate

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13. Jerry Brown
Governor of California

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14. Corey Lewandowski
Co-founder, Avenue Strategies

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15. Paul Singer
President,
Elliott Management Corp.

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16. Randel Johnson
Senior Vice President, Labor, Immigration, and Employee Benefits, U.S. Chamber of Commerce

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17. Joe Manchin
U.S. Senator

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18. Kenneth Feinberg
Founder and managingpartner, Feinberg Rozen

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19. Scott Walker
Governor of Wisconsin

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20. Richard Trumka
President, AFL-CIO

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21. Mike Rawlings
Mayor of Dallas

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22. Elizabeth Warren
U.S. Senator

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23. Kent Mason
Partner,
Davis & Harman

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24. Bernie Sanders
U.S. Senator

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25. Randi Weingarten
President, American Federation of Teachers


American Federation U.S. Betsy DeVos California Randi Weingarten
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