Elected President Joe Biden speaks before the holiday at the Queen Theater on December 22, 2020 in Wilmington, Delaware. Biden spoke ahead of the Christmas break and called for a $ 900 billion bill for congressional coronavirus assistance, calling for more economic relief after the inauguration.
Joshua Roberts | Getty Images
The brother of one of President-elect Joe Biden’s closest advisers has just picked up Amazon as a new customer.
Jeff Ricchetti, the brother of Biden’s White House adviser Steve Ricchetti, recently obtained a lobbying contract with Amazon, according to a new report on the release of lobbying works.
The report shows that Ricchetti was registered to work on Amazon.com Services LLC on November 13, just a week after Biden was projected to defeat President Donald Trump. Amazon lists the limited liability company on its website as part of its group of companies.
Ethics advocates had earlier told CNBC that Steve Ricchetti, who was also a lobbyist more than a decade ago, might have to speak out on issues that could affect his brother’s clients.
A person familiar with the relationship between the brothers said that they keep their professional life completely separate and that Jeff Ricchetti would never work for Steve Ricchetti.
“Jeff has never owned his brother and will never run on behalf of any of his clients, and Steve has not played a role in his brother’s business since he sold his stake in the company in 2012,” the source told CNBC said. “Steve and Jeff clearly like their professional activities.” This person did not want to be named as the relationship is private.
Biden’s position on Amazon calls on the company to start paying taxes.
“I do not think any company, I do not give a dime how big they are, the Lord Almighty, should absolutely be in a position where they pay no taxes and earn billions and billions and billions of dollars, No. 1 , ‘Biden said during a’ Squawk Box ‘interview in May.
The disclosure report shows that Jeff Ricchetti will sue Amazon for issues related to the coronavirus pandemic and the implementation of the CARES law. It looks like Amazon is on the verge of expanding its healthcare business, known as Amazon Care.
The Amazon customer is the youngest for Ricchetti since Biden was the projected winner of the 2020 election.
Ricchetti also registered to work at Evofem Biosciences on November 15, days after he officially started working for Amazon. According to Evofem, Ricchetti will focus on ‘federal health policy regarding coverage for contraceptive services’, according to the report on lobbying.
For Amazon, this is the latest step to quietly prepare for the incoming Biden administration.
Reuters reported that two officials at the e-commerce company are working on the Biden agency team. Amazon executives are reportedly urging allies for roles within Biden’s government.
During the Trump administration, Amazon did hire those close to the president for lobbying. One of those lobbyists was Jeff Miller, a longtime fundraiser for Trump’s campaign.
Amazon and Jeff Ricchetti did not return CNBC’s requests for comment.
Correction: This story has been updated with the real name of Amazon’s affiliate Jeff Ricchetti.