Roland Arnall

Roland Edmond Arnall, of California, is U.S. Ambassador to the Netherlands. Arnall was nominated July 28, 2005, by President George W. Bush to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Kingdom of the Netherlands. He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on February 8, 2006.

It just so happens that Arnall, his wife, Dawn Arnall, and "their companies have been the biggest political contributors to Bush since 2002." 


 * "Major 527 donor Dawn Arnall should be happy to have her husband, Roland, nominated as Ambassador to the Netherlands. Roland is Chairman of Ameriquest, and Dawn is co-Chairman. Dawn Arnall gave $5 million in August 2004 to Progress for America Voter Fund, a 527 organization," PoliticalMoneyLine commented July 29, 2005.

Also on July 28, 2005, the same day President Bush nominated Arnall to be ambassador to the Netherlands, "the company he controls said it would set aside $325 million for a possible settlement of allegations of predatory lending tactics. ... Arnall's company, Ameriquest Mortgage Co., is being investigated by regulators in 30 states. A $325 million settlement would be one of the largest ever in a predatory lending case." 

Political Contributions 2004
The Ameriquest Capital Corporation donated $250,000 for the second Bush inauguration. Arnall and his wife, Dawn Arnall, who is co-chairman of the company, were both fund raisers for Bush-Cheney '04 Inc., achieving Ranger status by raising $200,000. 

#106 on the 2004 Forbes 400
At the time of his nomination, Arnall was serving "as Co-Chairman of Ameriquest Capital Corporation, a company he founded in 1979. He has served two-terms as a Trustee of the California State University System, the largest university system in the United States. Mr. Arnall is also a founding co-chairman and board member of the Simon Wiesenthal Center and the Museum of Tolerance."

The Forbes 400 for 2004 said of Arnall: "Secretive founder of mortgage lender Ameriquest started company as Long Beach Savings & Loan 1980. Now offers full-service lending. Arnall also invests in oil and gas, insurance and real estate. Retail loans: $40 billion a year. Longtime political donor gives on both sides of the aisle: contributed to both Arnold Schwarzenegger and former Calif. governor Gray Davis, who officiated at his wedding; backing Bush campaign. Pet charities: wildlife protection, education and human rights. Spends downtime on $46 million, 650-acre Aspen, Colo. compound."

Related SourceWatch Resources

 * Bush administration cronyism and incompetence
 * soft money

Profiles

 * "Forbes 400 Richest in America: #106, Arnall, Roland," Forbes, 2004.

Articles & Commentary

 * "An energetic push to inaugural fund," New York Times News Service (The Hindu), December 26, 2004.
 * Kirstin Downey, "Bush Picks Ameriquest Owner as Ambassador. Firm's Lending Tactics Investigated," Washington Post, July 29, 2005.