Joaquín Almunia

Joaquín Almunia       (union leader, politician)
Born	Joaquín Almunia Amann 17 June 1948 Bilbao, Spain
Nationality	Spanish
Ethnicity	Jewish
Alma mater	University of Deusto, Practical School for Advanced Studies, Harvard/Kennedy School
Member of	Centre for European Reform, European Council on Foreign Relations, Friends of Europe
Party	PSOE
Spanish politician, European Commissioner for 10 years, 6 Bilderbergs  European Commissioner for Competition  In office 9 February 2010 - 1 November 2014 Preceded by Neelie Kroes Succeeded by Margrethe Vestager  European Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs  In office 24 April 2004 - 9 February 2010 Served with Siim Kallas  Spain/Leader of the Opposition In office 14 May 1999 - 1 July 2000  Spain/Leader of the Opposition In office 22 June 1997 - 24 April 1998 Preceded by Felipe Gonzalez  Spain/Minister/Public Administrations In office 26 July 1986 - 12 March 1991  Spain/Minister/Labor,  Spain/Minister/National Health Service In office 1 December 1982 - 26 July 1986

Joaquín Almunia Amann is a Spanish politician who later was chosen to hold several positions in the European Commission. He is a multi-Bilderberger.

During his tenure in the two Barroso Commissions, he was European commissioner responsible for economic and monetary affairs (2004–2009) and, subsequently, vice-president and the European Commissioner for Competition (2009–2014), where he stalled an antitrust investigation into Google.

Background

He was born in Bilbao on 17 June 1948 to a bourgeois family, son to an engineer (father) of Valencian origin and his mother the daughter of a German physician of Jewish ancestry. His grandfather Isaac Amann was one of the promoters of the Bilbao–Getxo railway.

Education

Almunia attended the Jesuit School of Indautxu in Bilbao. He graduated with degrees in economics and law in 1971 and 1972, respectively, from the also Jesuit University of Deusto in Bilbao, and completed follow-up studies at the École pratique des hautes études in Paris, from 1970 to 1971. He also completed a program at the Harvard Kennedy School at Harvard University for senior managers in government in 1991. He was an associate lecturer on employment and social security law at the University of Alcalá de Henares from 1991 to 1994.

Career

Almunia was chief economist of the Unión General de Trabajadores (UGT), a trade union linked to the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE), from 1976 to 1979. He was economist at the Council Bureau of the Spanish Chambers of Commerce in Brussels from 1972 to 1975.

Almunia was a member of the Congress of Deputies from 1979 to 2004, representing Madrid. He was Minister of Employment and Social Security of the Government of Spain from 1982 to 1986 and Minister of Public Administration from 1986 to 1991. He was replaced by Juan Manuel Eguiagaray in the latter post. He was also the PSOE spokesperson from 1994 to 1997.

Upon the resignation of Felipe González after being defeated in the 1996 elections, the PSOE appointed Almunia as the party leader (Secretary-General), a position he held from 1997 to 2000. He attended the 1998 Bilderberg meeting. In 2000, Almunia was PSOE candidate for prime minister. The party was again defeated by incumbent Prime Minister José María Aznar of the conservative PP.

During his tenure in the two Barroso Commissions, he was European commissioner responsible for economic and monetary affairs (2004–2009) and, subsequently, vice-president and the European Commissioner for Competition (2009–2014), where he stalled an antitrust investigation into Google.

Spied upon by NSA

The US National Security Agency (NSA) tapped the cellphone of European Commission Vice President Joaquín Almunia between 2008 and 2009, when he was commissioner for economic and monetary affairs. Alumnia’s calls and text messages were monitored at the end of 2008 and early 2009 by not only the NSA but also Britain’s intelligence service GCHQ.

Deep state connections

Almunia studied at the Harvard/Kennedy School, a known recruitment ground for the CIA.

He is a member of the Centre for European Reform, European Council on Foreign Relations, Friends of Europe,Centre for European Policy Studies, The European House – Ambrosetti, and Jacques Delors Institute.

 

Events Participated in

Event	Start	End	Location(s)	Description
Bilderberg/1998	14 May 1998	17 May 1998	Scotland Turnberry	The 46th Bilderberg meeting, held in Scotland, chaired by Peter Carrington
Bilderberg/2005	5 May 2005	8 May 2005	Germany Rottach-Egern	The 53rd Bilderberg, 132 guests
Bilderberg/2008	5 June 2008	8 June 2008	US Virginia Chantilly	The 56th Bilderberg, Chantilly, Virginia, 139 guests
Bilderberg/2010	3 June 2010	6 June 2010	Spain Hotel Dolce Sitges Barcelona	The 122 guests met in the Hotel Dolce Sitges, Barcelona, Spain.
Bilderberg/2011	9 June 2011	12 June 2011	Switzerland Hotel Suvretta St. Moritz	59th meeting, in Switzerland, 129 guests
Bilderberg/2012	31 May 2012	3 June 2012	US Virginia Chantilly	The 58th Bilderberg, in Chantilly, Virginia. Unusually just 4 years after an earlier Bilderberg meeting there.
WEF/Annual Meeting/2008	23 January 2008	27 January 2008	World Economic Forum Switzerland	At the 2008 summit, Klaus Schwab called for a coordinated approach, where different 'stakeholders' collaborate across geographical, industrial, political and cultural boundaries."
WEF/Annual Meeting/2009	23 January 2009	27 January 2009	World Economic Forum Switzerland	Chairman Klaus Schwab outlined five objectives driving the Forum’s efforts to shape the global agenda, including letting the banks that caused the 2008 economic crisis keep writing the rules, the climate change agenda, over-national government structures, taking control over businesses with the stakeholder agenda, and a "new charter for the global economic order".
WEF/Annual Meeting/2013	23 January 2013	27 January 2013	World Economic Forum Switzerland	2500 mostly unelected leaders met to discuss "leading through adversity"
WEF/Annual Meeting/2014	22 January 2014	25 January 2014	World Economic Forum Switzerland	2604 guests in Davos considered "Reshaping The World"

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