‘Dance You Monkey’: Emails Show Biden Clean Air Official Took Commands From Chemical Lobbyist

 President Joe Biden announced his intent to nominate Joe Goffman to lead the EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation on March 8, 2022. That same day, Goffman wrote to Rich Gold, a major Democratic donor and Holland & Knight lobbyist who represents clients including the American Chemistry Council, oil and gas companies, and the timber industry, to thank him.

“It’s live,” Goffman said of the job announcement, text messages reviewed by The Daily Wire show. “Will I ever be able to thank you enough?”

“Gotta get good people in these jobs,” the lobbyist said. “And need to chat next steps.”

Goffman said he would call the lobbyist “tomorrow morning so I can give you a heads up about something.”

Messages between Goffman and Gold, obtained by the watchdog group Functional Government Initiative under the Freedom of Information Act and shared with The Daily Wire, suggest that Goffman did pay the favor back. In the ensuing months, Goffman shared intimate information about dynamics within the EPA, and in one case promised to “pull a rabbit out of the hat” for Gold.

In June 2022, Gold complained that Goffman’s staff had cancelled a meeting with the American Forest & Paper Association, which paid Gold $200,000 the year prior. Goffman agreed to undo the cancellation, despite having important business to do that day.

“What do I need to do?” the EPA official asked the lobbyist.

“Dance you monkey, dance,” came the reply. “I”ll be there. With tomatoes.”

The messages do not explain what Gold did to help Goffman secure the nomination from Biden. Responding to this story, EPA spokesman Nick Conger told The Daily Wire “A wide array of people supported Joe Goffman prior to and following his nomination as Assistant Administrator in the Office of Air and Radiation. Mr. Goffman engages regularly with a variety of stakeholders – including those from the regulated community – as part of his work to protect public health and the environment.” Goffman did not comment.

The relationship is an example of the “revolving door” in which entrenched Washington insiders use connections made from brief stints in government to fuel lucrative careers peddling access to their successors. Gold worked as a special assistant to the EPA administrator from 1993 to 1994, and has been a lobbyist ever since.

He is not Goffman’s only connection to the industries he helps regulate. Goffman, who also served in the EPA under President Barack Obama and as executive director of the Environmental and Energy Law Program at Harvard, had millions of dollars in personal investment, much focused on polluting or chemical-related industries, when he assumed his latest post. Goffman was so invested in these industries that he was forced to recuse himself from cases related to a number of issues, including semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, and speciality chemicals. Although he indicated that he would divest in conflicted companies, an email more than a month later indicated that he had not completed that process.

Goffman had been leading EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation (OAR) since Biden took office. But the president’s June announcement kicked off a Senate confirmation process that would officially make him assistant administrator of the agency. Perhaps slowed by at least three ethics complaints filed against Goffman, the Senate did not receive Goffman’s nomination until January 2023. He was not confirmed until January 2024, by a vote of 50-49.

But Goffman was hard at work while awaiting confirmation.

“Make sure Dow is on your stakeholder dance card,” Gold told Goffman in March 2023, a reference to the chemical company that had paid Gold $200,000 the year prior.

Gold pointed out that it could be a problem if Goffman only met with Dow “after the comment period closes,” referring to when the public can provide input on proposed federal rules. Goffman said that was fine, and later told Gold that the meeting with Dow went “excellent.”

A few days later, Goffman told Gold that the EPA “made changes on the compliance side” of the Good Neighbor rule, which regulated emissions, in response to concerns by the paper industry.

In early April, Gold thanked Goffman for, “Exceptional client service.”

Gold also gave instructions that month about how to deal with automobile rules. “Call me on auto nprm and MI event,” he said, referring to a Notice of Proposed Rule Making. “You better think about how to signal only a proposal and we’ll work with you.”

“I have a call into Bozella already,” Goffman replied, apparently referring to auto industry lobbyist John Bozella.

After the EPA unveiled a plan to regulate emissions from chemical plants, Gold turned the screws, sharing a Moody’s financial analysis and warning that “Interest rates for the industry will go up. Stock prices down.” Goffman asked Gold to send him the Moody’s article so he could share it, and said he would let the lobbyist know what he heard from Biden administration officials internally–and asked the lobbyist to return the favor, with the implication that lobbyists might be closer to some White House officials than top administrators were.

The Functional Government Initiative called Goffman a “swamp creature” and said it’s “hard to say which is the more surprising, Mr. Goffman’s willingness to divulge responses from high-ranking agency officials to Mr. Gold” or the “request that Mr. Gold keep him in the loop on what administration officials are saying.”

When the EPA raised eyebrows by extending its review period on a renewable fuel rule, Goffman disclosed to Gold that the additional changes would be “not substantive.” The Functional Government Initiative said “the inside knowledge provided by Mr. Goffman that the delay would not substantively alter what Mr. Gold already understood would be the final rule could have been invaluable to his clients, while also leaving others at a disadvantage.”

Gold also advised the EPA honcho that environmental regulation decisions could impact how much a union worked to get Biden re-elected, saying “You don’t want Steelworkers going to [White House Deputy Chief of Staff] Jen O’Malley-Dillon telling her they’re going to wait to activate campaign activities to see what happens.”

“Exactly. We are working on it,” Gold agreed.

Less than two weeks after signing the Biden administration ethics pledge, Goffman admitted to violating its provision on communicating with former employers by setting up a meeting with a Harvard University official, for which he was chided by an ethics official. Still, Goffman promptly provided agency resources to another Harvard colleague, and met with another Harvard official who wanted to “make a pitch for including money in his budget,” prior ethics complaints filed by Protect the Public Trust alleged.

Goffman also corresponded Nicole Distefano, a lobbyist who has represented the American Chemistry Council, the Domestic Petroleum Council, and chemical and energy firms like Chevron.

“Well now that you are official. What are the chances you’ll still talk to me,” the exchange began.

“They’re excellent, he responds 5 days later,” came the next message.

“I am sure I will have some requests for you,” she said, pledging not to “abuse our text message relationship.”