Barre Seid
Barre Seid | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1932 (age 91–92) |
| Alma mater | University of Chicago (BA) |
| Occupation | Business executive |
| Known for | Political Activism |
| Political party | Republican[1] |
Barre Seid is a Chicago-based American industrialist and political activist. He was the former CEO of Tripp Lite, an electrical products manufacturer before donating the company to Marble Freedom Trust, which on March 17, 2021 sold it to American-Irish power company Eaton for $1.65 billion.[2][3] He has made large contributions to conservative causes.[1]
Early life and education
Seid was born in 1932 to Russian Jewish immigrant parents and grew up on the South Side of Chicago.[3]
Seid attended the University of Chicago under a special bachelor's degree program. He served two years in the US Army and returned to Chicago to take a job as an assistant to investor and businessman Graham Trippe.[3]
In 2010 he was granted an honorary degree by Bar-Ilan University.[4]
Career
In the mid-1960s, he became president of Trippe Manufacturing, an electrical products manufacturer now known as Tripp Lite, and maintained that role for more than 50 years.[3]
Donations
Seid primarily donates anonymously, what is in political contexts referred to as dark money. Public donations are made through the Barbara and Barre Seid Foundation.[5]
Political
By April 2020, Seid had acquired a 100% stake in Tripp Lite. Seid donated the company to the newly created political advocacy group Marble Freedom Trust headed by Leonard Leo, a conservative legal activist. In March 2021 Marble Freedom Trust sold Tripp Lite to the Eaton Corporation for $1.65 billion.[3][2] The donation was made anonymously but his identity was confirmed by CNN and The New York Times based on public financial disclosures.[5][2] The New York Times described the donation as "among the largest single contributions ever to a politically focused nonprofit."[2]
He has anonymously supported the Foundation for Government Accountability.[5] He has also donated to the University of Chicago’s Becker Friedman Institute for Economics and the Heartland Institute.[3]
He is believed to have financed the documentary film Obsession: Radical Islam's War Against the West.[3]
Shimer College
From 2007 to 2008, Barre Seid gave $825,000 to Shimer College as an anonymous donor through his foundation,[6] though they were later unveiled as the donor by a former student by examining tax filings.[7][8] In January 2009, Thomas Lindsay became president of the school, with goals to increase the school's name recognition and board of trustees.[6] Through 2009, Lindsay increased the 22-member board by 13 members, with many having financial ties to Seid.[6] Many of the new board members shared right-wing political affiliations, leading alumni, students, and faculty to argue that the school was undergoing a "right-wing attempt to take over its board and administration."[7][9]
In 2010, Lindsay moved to rewrite the school's mission statement, even with overwhelming support by the school's assembly of faculty, staff, and students, to retain the original statement.[6] The trustees adopted the redrafted statement in February, but by April, the trustees voted 18 to 16 to dismiss Lindsay from the presidency.[6][8]
Personal life
Seid is not known to have any children. He has two brothers.[3]
References
- ^ a b Ladden-Hall, Dan (August 22, 2022). "Mogul Donates Mind-Blowing $1.6 Billion to New Conservative Nonprofit". The Daily Beast. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
- ^ a b c d Vogel, Kenneth P.; Goldmacher, Shane (August 22, 2022). "An Unusual $1.6 Billion Donation Bolsters Conservatives". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Perez, Andrew; Kroll, Andy; Elliott, Justin (August 22, 2022). "How a Secretive Billionaire Handed His Fortune to the Architect of the Right-Wing Takeover of the Courts". ProPublica. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
- ^ KAMPEAS, RON. "Pro-Israel donor Barre Seid donated $1.6 billion to conservative group". jpost.com. The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved August 23, 2022.
- ^ a b c Tolan, Casey; Devine, Curt; Griffin, Drew (August 22, 2022). "Massive dark money windfall: New conservative group got $1.6 billion from single donor". CNN. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e Troop, Don (February 25, 2010). "At a Tiny College, an Epic Battle Over Academic Authority". Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved April 10, 2014.
- ^ a b Isaacs, Deanna (February 25, 2010). "Who's Buying Shimer?". Chicago Reader. Retrieved April 10, 2010.
- ^ a b Stripling, Jack (April 21, 2010). "Old School Shimer". Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
- ^ Isaacs, Deanna (December 10, 2009). "The Conservative Menace". Chicago Reader. Retrieved August 22, 2022.