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Wilbur Ross

Wilbur Ross (28 November 1937-) was US Secretary of Commerce from 28 February 2017 to 20 January 2021, succeeding Penny Pritzker and preceding Gina Raimondo.

Biography[]

Wilbur Ross was born on 28 November 1937 in Weehawken, New Jersey to a wealthy family, the son of a lawyer and a schoolteacher. Ross gained his Master of Business Administration from Harvard Business School, and he made money through steel, coal, telecommunications, foreign investments, and textiles, acquiring a net worth of around $150,000,000. Ross was known for taking advantage of struggling businesses and businesses that were in debt, using leveraged buyouts to incorporate small businesses into his multi-million-dollar empire. On 30 November 2016, President-elect Donald Trump nominated him for the cabinet position of Secretary of Commerce, and he was sworn into office on 28 February 2017. In November 2017, the Paradise Papers leaks revealed that Ross had failed to clearly disclose financial ties to Russian interests in his confirmation hearings. He left office with the rest of the Trump administration in 2021.

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