< 25 Top Pension Power Players

Elizabeth Warren

Massachusetts Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren is one of her party’s fiercest opponents of the Republican agenda on retirement, which ranges from privatizing Social Security to cutbacks in pension benefits. And with key pension issues coming down the pipeline, she’s the leader workers expect to fight in their corner, as she did last year when she came out against Goldman Sachs Group and Northern Trust Corp. for charging fees on the Teamsters’ Central States Pension Fund when it was facing insolvency. As a populist counterpoint to Donald Trump, she’s among the few capable of mobilizing crowds that could force the GOP to reconsider its policies. Warren, 67, who recently announced that she will run for reelection in 2018, sits on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee and has been talking about the retirement crisis almost since she joined the Senate, in 2011. Her signature accomplishment, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, shows her understanding of the complex financial issues facing middle-class voters. One of the Democrats’ most prodigious fundraisers, Warren is widely considered a potential presidential candidate for 2020. — Michelle Celarier

 
The 2017 Pension Political Power 25

1. Andy Puzder Secretary of Labor 2. Bruce Rauner Governor of Illinois 3. Betsy DeVos Secretary of Education Podcast: Uncovering Opportunities in Direct Real Estate Sponsored by Fidelity Investments June 30, 2025 4. Laura & John Arnold Founders, Laura and John Arnold Foundation 5. Steven Mnuchin Secretary of the Treasury

6. Wilbur Ross Secretary of Commerce 7. Tani Cantil-Sakauye California Chief Justice 8. Paul Ryan Speaker of the House 9. Anthony Scaramucci Founder, SkyBridge Capital 10. Kevin de León California State Senator and President Pro Tempore

11. Mike Enzi Chairman, Senate Subcommittee on Primary Health and Retirement Security 12. Steve Sweeney President, New Jersey State Senate 13. Jerry Brown Governor of California 14. Corey Lewandowski Co-founder, Avenue Strategies 15. Paul Singer President, Elliott Management Corp.

16. Randel Johnson Senior Vice President, Labor, Immigration, and Employee Benefits, U.S. Chamber of Commerce 17. Joe Manchin U.S. Senator 18. Kenneth Feinberg Founder and managingpartner, Feinberg Rozen 19. Scott Walker Governor of Wisconsin 20. Richard Trumka President, AFL-CIO

21. Mike Rawlings Mayor of Dallas 22. Elizabeth Warren U.S. Senator 23. Kent Mason Partner, Davis & Harman 24. Bernie Sanders U.S. Senator 25. Randi Weingarten President, American Federation of Teachers