University of Virginia Jim Donovan
Jim Donovan is the Goldman Sachs director and advisor to President Donald Trump who has been seen on dates with Hope Hicks.
Hicks is the former White House communications director who resigned in 2018 after admitting to Congress she sometimes told “white lies” for President Trump. It was announced in February 2020 Hicks was planning to return to the White House as a counselor to the president.
Hicks has been spotted with Donovan in both Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. Page Six reported the couple has been dating for a few months.
Here’s what you need to know about Jim Donovan.
1. Donovan Serves On President Trump’s Intelligence Advisory Board & Was Nominated For Deputy Treasury Secretary
President Donald Trump nominated Jim Donovan for the role of deputy Treasury secretary in 2017. Politico reported Donovan was instrumental in helping the Trump administration staff the Treasury Department and he would have served as Steven Mnuchin’s second-in-command.
But in May 2017, Donovan withdrew his name from consideration, citing family concern. In an emailed statement published by the New York Times, Donovan explained, “I am deeply honored by President Trump’s decision to nominate me. However, at this time I want to focus on my family, and I can no longer accept it. I hope to be able to serve this administration in the future and fully support President Trump and Secretary Steven Mnuchin’s ongoing work to reform the tax system and grow the U.S. economy.”
But since then, Donovan took a different advisory role in the administration. In 2018, he was named to the president’s Intelligence Advisory Board. The panel was first established in the 1950s by President Eisenhower. Board members are selected to advise the president “on the conduct of U.S. intelligence,” the White House explained.
2. Jim Donovan Is a GOP Fundraiser & Was an Economic Advisor to Jeb Bush’s Campaign In 2016
Jim Donovan has donated to Republican campaigns over the years. In 2019, his donations included $5,000 to the Republican Majority Fund, $3,000 to a committee that supports Senator Mitt Romney, and $2,800 to benefit Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, according to the Federal Election Commission.
During the 2016 primary election, Donovan backed Jeb Bush. He raised funds for the campaign and served as an economic advisor, CNBC reported. Donovan supported Romney during the 2012 election.
ABC reported Donovan also donated more than $100,000 to various Republican organizations in 2015 and 2016 but did not make any significant contributions to pro-Trump organizations.
3. Jim Donovan’s Father Falsely Accused Him of Attempted Murder In 2005
Jim Donovan’s family made headlines in the mid-2000s due to a plot orchestrated by his father, John J. Donovan Sr. The family patriarch previously worked as a professor at MIT and “amassed a $100 million fortune as a businessman, executive mentor, and consultant,” according to the Boston Globe.
But the elder Donovan had strained relationships with his five children. He believed his adult children were trying to rob him of real estate properties he owned, the newspaper reported at the time. Boston.com also reported the family was fighting over trusts valued at $180 million. In addition, one of his daughters accused him of sexual abuse, a claim he denied.
Prosecutors said Donovan Sr. executed a plot to try to gain an advantage in the legal disputes with his children. Police said he shot himself in the stomach outside of his office in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and staged the scene to make it look like an attack.
Donovan Sr. accused Jim of hiring two Russian hitmen to kill him. But investigators concluded the story was a fabrication and charged Donovan Sr. with filing a false police report. After their father was indicted, Jim Donovan and his siblings said in a statement they were “saddened, but not surprised” by their father’s actions. Donovan Sr. was convicted and sentenced to probation.
Jim Donovan also faced scrutiny from his employers at Goldman Sachs after his father accused him of money laundering. An investigation concluded there was no wrongdoing on Donovan’s part, according to the New York Daily News.
4. Donovan Has Been a Goldman Sachs Partner Since 2000 & Is an Adjunct Professor at the University Of Virginia School of Law
Jim Donovan
Jim Donovan earned a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from MIT, as well as an MBA, in 1989. While pursuing both degrees at the same time, Donovan also found the time to compete on MIT’s Division I rowing team.
Donovan’s summers included internships. He gained experience at a law firm, an investment bank, and as a White House Fellow to figure out his career path. He then went on to Harvard for a law degree.
After graduating from Harvard, Donovan accepted a job at Goldman Sachs and he was been with the firm ever since. He was named a partner in 2000 and his current title is “Managing Director.”
According to a 2001 Harvard Law Bulletin, Donovan’s job involved wealth management for multi-millionaires. His clients included wealthy individuals with at least $25 million in assets. “It’s Donovan’s job to take care of every financial whim of New England’s wealthiest families, from identifying philanthropic opportunities, to buying and selling companies, and everything in between.”
Donovan told the publication that he always intended to pursue a career in finance, even while he was in law school. The bulletin noted that Donovan regularly returned to Harvard to encourage law students to keep an open mind about finance.
In addition to his ongoing role at Goldman Sachs, Donovan is also an adjunct professor at the University of Virginia School of Law. According to his school bio, Donovan teaches classes on corporate strategy and leadership.
5. Jim Donovan Has Four Children With His Estranged Wife
Jim Donovan and his estranged wife, Christine Donovan, have two sons and two daughters together. The Boston Globe highlighted the Donovan family controversies, centered around patriarch John Donovan Sr, in a 2017 feature. The article mentioned that in the mid-2000s, Jim Donovan moved out of Massachusetts in the mid-2000s with his wife and the three children they had at the time to get away from the drama.
The Daily Mail reports Christine works as a physical therapist. It was not immediately clear when the couple split or whether they are divorced.
According to Donovan’s bio on the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health website, his mother lives with him and his children in Virginia. The bio, which does not have a publication date, does not mention Christine.
Donovan was featured on this site because he’s a longtime runner and competes in races to raise money for cancer research.
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