Today’s New York Post features a Q&A with Rumsonian Mickey Gooch, who among other things is a Wall Street billionaire, head New Jersey fundraiser for GOP presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani and co-owner, with his wife Diane, of the Red Bank-based Two River Times.
In the interview, Gooch explains why so many Wall Street firms — but not his — have gotten hammered in the credit meltdown, how his boy Rudy’s doing in New Jersey, and whether he finds it “satisfying” to be a paper billionaire.
From the story:
Q: New Jersey has raised a lot of money for Rudy?
A: Rudy has raised more money in the state of New Jersey than any other candidate including the Democrats, and the only other state where he has achieved that is Texas.
Q: Your $1 billion stake in GFI is the larger than any other brokerage CEO on Wall Street. Is that satisfying?
A: Well, when I formed GFI in 1987 – and I scribbled the first business plan on some green paper – I did say my goal was to build the world’s preeminent inter-dealer derivatives company.
Today, we are the leader in credit derivatives. To some extent I did have this goal, but I didn’t necessarily have the valuation personal net worth goal in that regard. I don’t think 20 years ago – when I was 28-years-old – I was necessarily thinking in that regard. I probably would have thought back then that $50 million would have been quite a lot of money. In fact, my wife re minds me that I said when we were first married that if I made $50 million I would retire.
Q: Do you think Rudy has been play ing up his 9/11 record too much?
A: I haven’t heard him bring it up recently. Seems to be not the main topic these days. I tell a joke – when people talk about Iraq – that if Rudy becomes President the first thing he will do is get rid of the Baghdad squeegee boys.
