Andrew Marshall Saul (born November 6, 1946) is an American businessman and political candidate who served as the 16th commissioner of the United States Social Security Administration from 2019 to 2021. Saul was fired from the position by President Joe Biden on July 9, 2021, after refusing to offer his requested resignation. Saul stated that his discharge was illegal.
Saul previously served as the chair of the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board (FRTIB) and vice chairman of the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Saul has been a general partner in the investment firm Saul Partners, L.P., since 1986. As chair of the Thrift Investment Board, he oversaw the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP), a retirement savings account for employees of the Federal Government and soldiers of the armed services.
Early life and education
Saul was born to a Jewish family in New York City. He graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1968.Trump holdover who heads Maryland-based Social Security Administration is under fire from congressional Democrats. Retrieved October 7, 2021, from baltimoresun.com.
Career
Business Saul began his career with Brooks Fashion Stores, rising to become its president, and growing the company into a large corporation listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Along with his father, he then purchased the bankrupt South Florida women's apparel company Caché Inc. and restored it to solvency."U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Thomas Britto approved a plan of reorganization to keep Caché, a financially troubled women's clothing chain, in business. Saul Partners, a New York retailing partnership was to invest up to $11 million in the Miami-based company, obtaining over 50% of Caché's stock. The confirmation, following a brief hearing, was unopposed."—Miami Herald, December 20, 1986.Owens, Dory. "Caché reorganization plan OK'D with no opposition". Miami Herald, page 4B. December 20, 1986.Chrissos, Joan. "Caché to get Life-Saving Investment". Miami Herald. December 3, 1986. The company was an upscale fashion store with 300 outlets around the world, and was publicly traded on the NASDAQ.Murray, Brean. "Caché Inc. - Initiating Coverage". Foster Securities Inc. June 2, 2003.Chrissos, Joan. "Retailer Ready to Shift Headquarters and Strategy". Miami Herald, page 21BM. February 23, 1987. He has served on the board of directors since 1986, and as chair from February 1993 to October 2000.Executive Profile: Andrew M. Saul, Director: Cache, Incorporated . Retrieved 8/17/07 from executivedisclosure.com . Cache again filed for bankruptcy protection in 2015 when it ceased all operations.
In 1986, he founded an investment firm with his father, Saul Partners, L.P., as a partner. He is a member of the board of trustees of the Federation of Jewish Philanthropies, the United Jewish Appeal Federation, the Sarah Neuman Nursing Home, the Wharton School of Business, the Manhattan Institute, and Mount Sinai Hospital, New York City.Mount Sinai Medical Center Board of Trustees . Retrieved April 8, 2007, from mountsinai.org. He is also a member of the Chairman's Council of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and a patron of the Museum of Modern Art, and is one of the top art collectors in New York, with extensive holdings of modern art and contemporary art, especially post war American and Chinese bronzes.New York's Top Art Collectors. New York Sun. July 7, 2005.Brandon 2006, p. 141 In May 2013, he was made a member of the board of trustees for the National Gallery of Art.
Metropolitan Transportation Authority
In 2006, Saul was appointed by Governor George Pataki to a six-year term as a vice-chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority after nine years as a board member. He was recommended by Westchester County Executive Andy Spano. He also served as Chair of the Finance Committee, and was a member of each of the other eleven board committees of the MTA.MTA Board Members. Retrieved August 13, 2007, from mta.info. Saul was originally appointed to the board to represent Westchester County in 1996 by County Executive Andrew O'Rourke.
In 2005, Saul was one of only two members to vote against a one-time $50 million holiday fare discount from the MTA's budget surplus.Smerd, Jeremy. "Transit Officials Approve $50 Million For Discounts on Holiday Fares". New York Sun. October 28, 2005.
Federal Thrift Retirement Investment Board
Saul was nominated by President George W. Bush and confirmed by the United States Senate in 2002 as chairman of the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, the agency which manages the Thrift Savings Plan for employees of Federal Government agencies, and soldiers in the Armed Services, providing retirement security for more than 3.7 million participants.Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board Board Members , Retrieved April 8, 2007, from tsp.gov. He was confirmed unanimously by the Senate, which was controlled by the Democrats.Senate Action on Presidential Nomination: PN1851-107. Library of Congress. June 6, 2002 (107th Congress)."Nominations of Alejandro M. Sanchez, Andrew M. Saul, and Gordon J. Whiting to be members of the Federal Thrift Retirement Investment Board. Hearing before the Committee on Governmental Affairs, United States Senate, 107th Congress, Second Session. Novebember 15, 2002." U.S. Government Printing Office. Washington, D.C.: 2002. Saul replaced James H. Atkins of Arkansas, who had been nominated to a third term by President Bill Clinton in a recess appointment. Since being appointed by President Bush, Saul pushed for more rigorous audits of TSP operations. The General Accounting Office concurred with Saul's efforts in a 2003 report, urging Congress to set up procedures that would keep it better informed about the operations and policy decisions at the federal employee retirement program, suggesting that Congress could "establish a formal process by which the Secretary of Labor can report to the Congress issues of critical concern associated with the actions of the TSP board and executive director."
During his confirmation hearing, Senator Daniel Akaka told Saul he would be facing a difficult situation, as the outgoing executive director had taken a number of actions before his sudden departure which led to "demoralization of the TSP staff, expensive lawsuits, investigations, rancorous battles with other agencies, along with the costs of a failed record keeping system project" that were all eventually dealt with by the FRTIB."When I and two of my fellow Board members last appeared before this Subcommittee in November 2002, at our confirmation hearing, then Chairman Akaka graciously yet firmly made us aware of the difficult situation that we faced in assuming our new roles as Board members. This warning proved to be an understatement, as we entered an embattled agency. The outgoing Executive Director took a number of actions just before his abrupt departure that demoralized the staff, many of whom had built the program from the beginning. Expensive lawsuits and investigations were sprouting up, rancorous battles were underway with other agencies, the costs of the failed record keeping system project had not been charged to participants, and decisions had to be made immediately on whether to go forward with the new record keeping system project at all. I and my fellow Board members entered this environment and, working with the seasoned senior career staff, methodically sorted through these matters, keeping the new system and other projects on track and moving forward as we restored essential relationships."—Oversight of the Thrift Savings Plan: Ensuring the Integrity of Federal Employee Retirement Savings. Statement of The Honorable Andrew M. Saul, Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs. March 1, 2004. Shortly after Saul assumed office, TSP Executive Director James Petrick resigned.Rutzick, Karen. "Retirement Planning Honey Pot ". Government Executive. April 20, 2007. It has been alleged by former FRTIB Chairman and Executive Director Roger Mehle that this occurred when Petrick wished to pursue a lawsuit against the contractor for the record keeping system which led to a conflict with the Justice Department over whether the board had standing to sue. Saul pursued a settlement and dropped the lawsuit."A Federal Agency Responds To Criticism Of Wasting Money". Information Week. July 19, 2004. In 2007, Mehle launched his own lawsuit against Saul and the board which alleges that the board violated its fiduciary duty to TSP participants by forcing out Petrick in order to settle the lawsuit against the contractor.Saul has said that the Board asked for Petrick's resignation after he was rude to them on the phone, and caused the resignation of six senior TSP staffers. Petrick was a sixteen year veteran of the TSP and held a lifetime appointment as Executive Director from the previous members of the FRTIB.
With the Thrift Savings Board, he eliminated open enrollment periods, which had allowed eligible participants to enroll year-round.Barr, Stephen. "Soon, Every Day Will Be Open Season for TSP Participants ". The Washington Post. February 2, 2005.Barr, Stephen. "TSP Aims to End Limits on When Employees Can Alter Retirement Accounts". The Washington Post, page B02. April 12, 2004.
Saul, and his executive director Gary Amelio, inherited a mishandled computer project for a new record-keeping system, which had been started in 1997 and wasted $36 million.Barr, Stephen. "The More Things Change, The Better They Get at TSP". The Washington Post. January 15, 2006. The system was eventually brought online in 2003. Under the direction of Saul and Amelio, a new mainframe computer was installed that ran ten times faster than the old system, with an emergency backup computer that can be used in the event of a disaster. The agency also acquired its first toll-free line, opened two new call centers, and extended hours for customer service. On May 3, 2007, President George W. Bush renominated Saul to two more consecutive terms on the board expiring September 25, 2012.President Bush's Nominations and Withdrawal Sent to the Senate, May 3, 2007 . America's News Today . May 3, 2007. Following the resignation of Gary Amelio in 2007, Saul appointed Gregory T. Long as executive director for the Thrift Savings Plan. Long was previously the director of product development for the TSP.Barr, Stephen. "New TSP Executive Director". The Washington Post. March 21, 2007.
In June 2007, the Federal Thrift Retirement Investment Board approved a resolution to prohibit Congress from proposing that companies that do business in Iran or Sudan be removed from the Thrift Savings Plan, in order to reduce support for Iran's oil and gas industry or to reprimand the Sudanese government for its role in the Darfur conflict.Barr, Stephen. "Retirement Fund Shouldn't Be Political Tool, Board Says". The Washington Post. June 21, 2007. Saul said such changes would not be in the TSP participants' best interest since the changes would go against past precedent that the TSP not interfere in social or political matters. Members of Congress including Reps. Tom Davis, Jon Porter, Henry Waxman, and Danny Davis, wrote Saul in July 2005 saying that they wanted to have an independent professional investment consultant examine whether new investment choices would benefit TSP participants, which led to a conflict between Congress and the board regarding real estate investment trust funds.. Retrieved December 8, 2007, from fedmanager.com.