Longtime PCAOB official to lead the audit watchdog, US SEC says
George Botic, a certified public accountant who has been a PCAOB board member since October 2023, will on Wednesday become the acting chair of the PCAOB, the SEC said in a statement late on Monday. Congress formed the nonprofit in 2002 in response to a series of high-profile accounting scandals and auditing failures.
Botic said in the SEC's statement that he was honored to work with the securities regulator, which oversees the board, and PCAOB staff to meet its mission.
The SEC's chairman last week asked for the resignation of Erica Williams, who had been leading the PCAOB since January 2022.
Botic has worked at the PCAOB for over two decades, in a variety of roles, according to his LinkedIn profile.
The change in leadership has been expected since Republicans took power in Washington earlier this year. SEC Chairman Paul Atkins has been a vocal critic of the PCAOB in the past, and Republican lawmakers earlier this year tried unsuccessfully to effectively eliminate the group.
The outgoing chair told Reuters she urged the incoming leadership to protect the watchdog's work.
"Now is not the time to pull back from the PCAOB," Erica Williams told Reuters in an interview last week.
"History tells us that in times when the economy is tight, when there is volatility, that's when people cook the books. There is an increased risk of fraud.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
3 minutes ago
- The Independent
CNN host laughs at Republican senator as he fact-checks him on Epstein ‘sweetheart' deal
CNN's Jake Tapper repeatedly fact-checked a Republican senator on air Sunday as the lawmaker insisted that Democrats and Barack Obama's administration were at fault for a 'sweetheart' deal that allowed Jeffrey Epstein to escape his 2008 conviction on child sex charges virtually unscathed. Sen. Markwayne Mullin appeared on CNN's State of the Union and repeatedly claimed that a plea agreement to keep Epstein from being charged federally for child sex crimes was signed in 2009, under the Obama administration. But Epstein's plea agreement was drafted in 2007 and signed in 2008, when he pleaded guilty to soliciting a minor for sex, before Obama was even president. 'It was 2008,' Tapper corrected him, chuckling. Tapper noted that the U.S. attorney who oversaw the non-prosecution agreement was Alex Acosta, who went on become Donald Trump's secretary of labor during his first administration. 'It all took place in 2008,' Tapper said. Mullin then shot back, asking 'who was in office at the time?' — seemingly making the error of assuming that Obama was the president. Obama won the presidential election that year but was inaugurated in January 2009. 'In 2008, George W. Bush was the president,' Tapper said, as he was cut off by Mullin repeating his question. 'George W. Bush.' Mullin went on to insist that because the case was 'sealed in 2009' that Democrats were somehow involved. A clearly exasperated Tapper responded that 'the point is, the 'sweetheart deal', which was completed in 2008, was under the Bush administration.' The plea agreement inked between Acosta and Epstein's attorney, Alan Dershowitz, was staggering in its leniency. Epstein was allowed to leave the prison facility for hours at a time for 'work release' to the headquarters of a nebulous enterprise called the 'Florida Science Foundation' he founded shortly before beginning his sentence and shut down when it concluded. Inside the prison, Epstein was allowed to maintain his own office, just as he'd done at Harvard University for years, while watching television and was watched by guards who wore suits and were partially on his payroll. Mullin and other Republicans closely aligned with the president are treading a careful line on the issue of the Epstein investigation. The Trump administration ignited a firestorm early in July when the Department of Justice and FBI announced that the agencies would not release any more documents related to the Epstein investigation despite having promised to do so. The agencies cited a refusal to release identifying information about victims and graphic sexual imagery involving children. Most glaringly, the agencies also declared in that early July announcement that a so-called 'client list' of Epstein's alleged co-conspirators had not been found. Having latched on to the issue long before Trump was elected to a second term, his MAGA base descended into chaos. Many of the president's 2024 supporters called the reversal a betrayal by the administration, while some questioned whether Trump himself was involved in a cover-up to protect himself or other powerful men named as Epstein's accomplices in the files. Some Democrats latched on to the issue at the same time, joining calls for transparency. Then, a pair of articles in The Wall Street Journal purported to outline Trump's own connections to the investigation. The newspaper reported the contents of a message allegedly penned by Trump to Epstein as part of a 50th birthday celebration in 2003, including allusions to a 'secret.' Trump firmly denied authoring the note, and sued the newspaper and its reporters in response. A second article from the WSJ days later reported that Attorney General Pam Bondi informed Trump in May that he was mentioned in the Epstein investigation multiple times, thought it was not clear in what context The White House called that story 'fake' and has repeatedly insinuated that Democrats including Joe Biden tampered with the Epstein files in response. Being mentioned in the files does not mean wrongdoing, and hundreds of names are reportedly included. Republicans on Capitol Hill are caught in the middle. Some are joining on to a bipartisan effort led by Thomas Massie — a Republican who clashed with the president over the GOP budget reconciliation package earlier this year — and Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna to force the Justice Department to release the entirety of its document trove, with redactions for child sexual assault material and the names or identifying information of victims. Others more aligned with leadership, including House Speaker Mike Johnson. But Johnson and others have been careful not to label the Epstein story a distraction, to the White House's annoyance. Johnson called the August recess early this past week, sending lawmakers home for the month to avoid a vote legislation from Massie and Khanna.
The Sun
3 minutes ago
- The Sun
Investigators quiz jailed Ghislaine Maxwell about Prince Andrew, claim reports
INVESTIGATORS quizzed jailed madam Ghislaine Maxwell about Prince Andrew, it is reported. She answered 'honestly and truthfully' during nine hours of questions. 3 3 US Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche asked her about more than 100 people linked to her paedophile ex-boyfriend Jeffrey Epstein. Brit socialite Maxwell, 63, is serving 20 years in Florida after being convicted of offences including sex trafficking. The meeting came after President Donald Trump faced questions over his own links to Epstein, who killed himself in jail awaiting trial in 2019. A source, quoted by The Mail on Sunday, said: 'Ghislaine has never told her story to anyone in government before. 'At times it was very emotional but she answered every question asked of her. 'She was asked about a list of people including Prince Andrew, Bill Gates, Bill Clinton, Alan Dershowitz and powerful Wall Street financiers. 'It's ironic that Elon Musk kicked this whole thing off when he fell out with Trump and then made that post on X about Trump allegedly preventing the release of the full Epstein documents as some sort of 'cover-up'. 'Well, Elon is in there, as is his brother. "It was a monumental moment for Ghislaine to finally be asked about these people and to tell the truth.' Jeffrey Epstein's brother insists he was 'most likely murdered' amid mystery around 'missing minute' of 'suicide' video 3
The Independent
33 minutes ago
- The Independent
Boeing's fighter jet workers in the St. Louis area reject a contract offer
Boeing Co. expects more than 3,200 union workers at three St. Louis-area plants that produce U.S. fighter jets to strike after they rejected a proposed contract Sunday that included a 20% wage increase over four years. The International Machinists and Aerospace Workers union said the vote by District 837 members was overwhelmingly against the proposed contract. The existing contract was to expire at 11:59 p.m. Central time Sunday, but the union said a 'cooling off' period would keep a strike from beginning for another week, until Aug. 4. Union leaders had recommended approving the offer, calling it a 'landmark' agreement when it was announced last week. Organizers said then that the offer would improve medical, pension and overtime benefits in addition to pay. The vote came two days before Boeing planned to announce its second quarter earnings, after saying earlier this month that it had delivered 150 commercial airliners and 36 military aircraft and helicopters during the quarter, up from 130 and 26 during the first quarter. Its stock closed Friday at $233.06 a share, up $1.79. The union did not say specifically why members rejected the contract, only that it 'fell short of addressing the priorities and sacrifices' of the union's workers. Last fall, Boeing offered a general wage increase of 38% over four years to end a 53-day strike by 33,000 aircraft workers producing passenger aircraft. 'Our members are standing together to demand a contract that respects their work and ensures a secure future,' the union said in a statement. Dan Gillan, general manager and senior Boeing executive in St. Louis, said in a statement that the company is 'focused on preparing for a strike.' He described the proposal as 'the richest contract offer' ever presented to the St. Louis union. 'No talks are scheduled with the union,' said Gillan, who is also vice president for Boeing Air Dominance, the division for the production of several military jets, including the U.S. Navy's Super Hornet, as well as the Air Force 's Red Hawk training aircraft.
