Government and Politics
July 16, 2024
LANSING - As Mike Rogers speaks at the Republican National Convention today, he can’t run away from his extensive record of walking through the revolving door to enrich himself at Michiganders’ expense and supporting dangerous abortion bans.
“Mike Rogers can’t run away from his long record of enriching himself at Michiganders’ expense and supporting dangerous abortion bans. Rogers is only looking out for himself, and that’s why Michigan families can’t trust him to represent us in the Senate,” said Michigan Democratic Party spokesperson Sam Chan.
Rogers “passed through the ‘revolving door,’ advising companies on issues he dealt with in Congress” where he “multiplied his wealth.” It “points to the business relationships that Rogers engaged in over the last decade as a prominent ex-lawmaker, apparently making himself a multi-millionaire.”
Rogers “has a long record of helping expand the reach of Chinese companies in the U.S. and Europe” “in opposition to U.S. national security interests,” and he has “benefited financially from his ties to China.” When he served as the House Intelligence chairman, Rogers “co-authored a report on Chinese telecommunications companies, specifically saying Huawei Technologies ‘may be violating United States laws.’” Then, Rogers served as “chief security adviser for AT&T, a company that drew criticism, around that same time, from federal lawmakers for its connections with Huawei.”
Rogers has an extensive anti-abortion record. Rogers “consistently voted” for abortion bans that would rip away Michiganders’ freedom to make their own personal medical decisions. Rogers co-sponsored and voted for anti-abortion bills that would have criminalized and banned abortion.
Here’s what you need to know about Mike Rogers:
- Rogers “worked for AT&T, which faced pushback for its entanglements with a Chinese telecom giant.”
- After he left Congress, Rogers made “more than $32,000 from paid speeches in 2022, nearly $2 million in income from board positions at tech companies and cybersecurity firms in the last two years, and assets totaling as high as $17.5 million.”
- Rogers has “been linked to several Saudi companies” “in which he has personally gained from, including one with questionable nuclear ambitions.”
- Rogers has “personally benefitted from his connections to China in opposition to U.S. national security interests,” including “Nokia [which] has conducted extensive business deals with the Chinese tech companies like Huawei.”
- Rogers worked at AT&T at the same time “the company was trying to broker a deal to sell Huawei products in the United States” which “the U.S. House of Representatives, citing Rogers’ investigation, urged AT&T to abandon.”
- Rogers co-sponsored and voted for anti-abortion bills that would have criminalized and banned abortion and celebrated the Dobbs decision overturning Roe v. Wade.
- In Congress, Rogers co-sponsored four anti-IVF bills and “repeatedly co-sponsored bills” to suspend FDA approval of mifepristone. Rogers refuses to protect IVF in the Senate and won’t answer for his past fetal personhood legislation votes.
- If Rogers had “lived in Michigan instead of Florida” in 2022, he would have voted against Proposal 3.
See also: Detroit News: Mike Rogers targets China in Senate campaign, but his own connections draw criticism, Business Insider: 9 years through the revolving door: How the GOP’s top Senate recruit in Michigan got rich after leaving Congress, Heartland Signal: Michigan GOP Senate candidate Mike Rogers connected to Saudi companies, including one with nuclear ambitions, Heartland Signal: Michigan Senate candidate spews anti-China rhetoric despite working to expand Chinese companies and personal wealth, American Journal News: Michigan Republican Mike Rogers has repeatedly dodged questions about his work at AT&T, The Gander: Mike Rogers tries to distance Senate campaign from his anti-abortion record, The Gander: Republican Senate candidates face backlash over anti-abortion records in Michigan, CNN: Republican candidates downplay past anti-abortion stances ahead of 2024 election.