Tammy Baldwin criticizes the 1% for exploiting tax loopholes, while her partner is an expert in them
Senator Tammy Baldwin from Wisconsin has been a vocal critic of the U.S. tax code, arguing that it is laden with loopholes that benefit the richest Americans at the expense of regular taxpayers. Her campaign highlights her efforts to close these loopholes through proposed legislation like the Billionaires Income Tax Act and the Carried Interest Fairness Act. However, Baldwin’s critics point to a perceived contradiction, as her partner, Maria Brisbane, is a wealth adviser who specializes in minimizing tax obligations for ultra-high net worth clients at Morgan Stanley. Republican spokesperson Matt Fisher and others see this as hypocritical, especially as Baldwin faces a tough re-election battle against GOP candidate Eric Hovde. Despite these criticisms, Baldwin’s campaign defends her record and dismisses attacks related to her partner’s profession as baseless. The juxtaposition between Baldwin’s advocacy for tax fairness and her partner’s career continues to stir controversy in what is anticipated to be a highly competitive and scrutinized Senate race.
Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) has long criticized the U.S. tax code, claiming loopholes allow the wealthiest 1% of taxpayers to dodge paying their fair share. Her partner makes a living helping “Ultra High Net Worth” clients pay less in taxes.
Baldwin’s partner, Maria Brisbane, focuses on delivering “tax minimization strategies” for her clients at Morgan Stanley, which counts Brisbane as a private wealth adviser, according to the firm. It’s a fact that Republicans aim to exploit this election cycle over apparent hypocrisy: Baldwin, who faces a tough challenge in the Badger State this November from GOP businessman Eric Hovde, often calls the tax code unfair. In the Senate Democrat’s telling, the rules include “a Swiss cheese of loopholes” that benefit Wall Street and hurt Wisconsin families.
“Baldwin and Brisbane are enriching themselves by helping out-of-state clients avoid paying their taxes,” Matt Fisher, a spokesman for the Wisconsin Republican Party, told the Washington Examiner.
Baldwin and Brisbane, whom Forbes placed on its exclusive “America’s Top Women Wealth Advisors” list in February, have been dating since 2018. Brisbane and private wealth adviser Alex Zachary joined Morgan Stanley in early 2024 after their practice, the Brisbane Group, previously operated under Merrill Lynch, according to a report.
“The Brisbane Group is focused on helping Ultra High Net Worth individuals, families, and not-for-profit organizations create customized investment strategies with a focus on custom tailored equity portfolios,” Morgan Stanley says on its website, noting that the firm’s private wealth management division “is dedicated to serving the firm’s most affluent clients, including some of the world’s most accomplished entrepreneurs, executives and stewards of multigenerational wealth.”
Based in New York City, Morgan Stanley’s wealth management division offers clients investments in the likes of real estate and hedge funds — managers of which Baldwin said in April are not paying their “fair share” in taxes due to a loophole. Hedge funds, Baldwin said, “promote short-term gains at the expense of workers, taxpayers, and local communities.”
“Tammy Baldwin has been a leader in the fight to ensure the wealthiest Americans pay their fair share for years. Her record speaks for itself,” Andrew Mamo, a Baldwin campaign spokesman, told the Washington Examiner. “Attacking Tammy Baldwin for her partner’s work is baseless and wrong.”
The Baldwin campaign pointed to bills she introduced in recent years to address alleged loopholes, including the Billionaires Income Tax Act and Carried Interest Fairness Act. The campaign also pointed to reporting on Hovde self-financing his 2024 campaign and being invested in a hedge fund based in the Cayman Islands — a notorious tax haven.
Still, to the National Republican Senatorial Committee, Baldwin’s preaching about tax loopholes rings hollow.
“Career politician Tammy Baldwin complains about the rich dodging taxes while her Wall Street mega-millionaire partner is helping the rich dodge taxes,” said Tate Mitchell, a spokesman for the NRSC. “It doesn’t get more hypocritical than that.”
Brisbane and Zachary’s prior work at Merrill Lynch was reported in January to have produced $7.5 million in annual revenue from $1.5 billion in client assets. In 2021, Brisbane and Baldwin notably splurged on a $1.3 million “luxurious” penthouse in Washington, D.C., the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.
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Meanwhile, as Brisbane coaches wealthy clients on their finances, she also works to educate the next generation of private wealth advisers. For several years, Brisbane has taught a course at Columbia University’s prestigious business school called “Practice of Wealth Management for High-Net-Worth Clients.”
The course, according to a copy of the spring 2024 syllabus reviewed by the Washington Examiner, includes a seminar on “wealth transfer for tax-sensitive individuals.”
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