| It’s a prospect that has tantalized Wall Street for more than a decade: Jamie Dimon, CEO of America’s biggest bank, serving as Treasury secretary. With Dimon signaling he could retire from JPMorgan Chase in the coming years, the speculation is more rampant than ever — and it has many Republican lawmakers almost giddy ahead of the November elections. It doesn’t matter that Dimon’s a registered Democrat or that he’s staked out positions from trade to foreign policy that have put him at odds with former President Donald Trump. “I frankly would love it,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), who has gotten to know Dimon as a member of the Senate Banking Committee. “I like the guy,” said Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a more populist-leaning member of the banking panel. “I would consider him to be a policy maven.” “He’d be a good choice,” said Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), who is inching closer to serving as the Banking Committee’s GOP leader. The support for Dimon reflects the goodwill he has built on Capitol Hill over his 18 years as CEO of JPMorgan, where he’s served as the banking industry’s most visible and outspoken leader in Washington. It also illustrates that much of the GOP remains closely aligned with the business community, even as the party has embraced a populist brand that is more skeptical of corporate power. Trump himself has stoked the speculation around Dimon, and there have been signals this year that an adversarial relationship between Dimon and Vice President Kamala Harris may be softening. Though Dimon over the years has left open the possibility of public service, he said last week the chance of him serving in the next administration “is almost nil.” He added that he has “always reserved the right” to move into public service, but said: “I love what I do. I intend to be doing what I'm doing.” Trump has toyed with the idea at times and shot it down at others. He told Bloomberg News in June he would consider Dimon for Treasury, adding that he has “a lot of respect for” him. But he backtracked a month later, posting on his social media site, Truth Social, that he “never discussed, or thought of” appointing Dimon. The latest twist came when Trump falsely posted on social media this month that Dimon was endorsing him. Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung said in a statement that “formal discussions of who will serve in a second Trump Administration is premature.” Dimon has a unique stature in Washington. A former chair of the Business Roundtable, he has become one of Wall Street’s key conduits to top policymakers and is among the most active bank executives in the capital, according to lawmakers interviewed for this story. His lobbying goes beyond just issues that affect his bank. Cramer recalled a weekend phone call he received from Dimon, who was pushing for a foreign aid package supporting Ukraine and Israel and wanted to check on the status. “Whatever's on his mind or in his heart he says out loud, which is part of why he’s interesting,” Cramer said. His bluntness has also been known to create political kerfuffles that later need cleaning up. In 2021, he had to walk back a joke he made in Hong Kong after he quipped that JPMorgan would “last longer” than the Chinese Communist Party. He later said he “should not have made that comment.” In 2018, he was forced to backpedal after saying he “could beat Trump” because he is as tough and “smarter than he is.” Dimon later said the remark “proves I wouldn’t make a good politician.” Dimon had a run-in with Harris that she chronicled in her 2019 book, “The Truths We Hold: An American Journey.” Harris wrote that she and Dimon “were like dogs in a fight” as she was trying to negotiate a settlement with big banks that ultimately forced them to pay billions to homeowners harmed by the foreclosure crisis. Describing a phone call with Dimon, Harris said the JPMorgan boss yelled at her that she was “trying to steal from my shareholders.” “I gave it right back,” she wrote. But the two have apparently smoothed things over since: Harris and Dimon reportedly had lunch together at the White House in March. Harris’s campaign declined to comment. Many of the vice president’s allies in the business community would likely love to see him serve in her administration if she wins. But he would be a polarizing pick in any administration for the party’s left flank. A Dimon nomination could also face opposition from more populist Republicans who have sought to push the party to take a tougher approach to Wall Street. “Not a good pick,” said Rep. Warren Davidson (R-Ohio), a Trump ally on House Financial Services, who added that he has “no worries” that Dimon would actually get the nod. “For a lot of reasons, it wouldn't build confidence in our system to pick Jamie Dimon to lead it,” Davidson said. Dimon described himself in 2012 as “barely a Democrat at this point” and has been sharply critical of financial regulatory changes brought by agency officials tapped by President Joe Biden. His evolution has been enough to maintain a GOP fanbase. “I understand he's a Democrat — I don’t care,” Kennedy said. “There are things that I agree with Mr. Dimon, there are things that I disagree with. But you don't have to be a senior at CalTech to know he's been very successful.” IT’S FRIDAY — Send Capitol Hill tips to jgoodman@politico.com. And as always, find Sam at ssutton@politico.com.
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