Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Will the fall of Jacobs starve Faulconer?

End of era as top Qualcomm political fixer steps aside

Irwin Jacobs
Irwin Jacobs

The finale may finally be coming into view for cell phone chip making giant Qualcomm, currently the target of a hostile takeover campaign. Echoes of the company's outsized influence on San Diego politics are likely to resonate for years.

Officials of both parties have stuffed their portfolios with Qualcomm stock, at least some allegedly purchased based on insider tips, keeping their hands out for political gifts and gratuities that the company has donated.

News that Paul Jacobs, a son of Qualcomm co-founder Irwin Jacobs, is stepping down as chairman of the board won't necessarily spell the end of his family's power plays here, although tapping the company treasury could be a thing of the past.

It's been five years since New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, acting on behalf of the state employee pension fund, sued Qualcomm, demanding "to inspect the company’s books and records to determine how shareholder funds are being spent for political purposes."

Sponsored
Sponsored

The suit charged that the younger Jacobs, then chairman and chief executive of Qualcomm, was less than transparent about how shareholders' political money was deployed.

"Senior figures associated with Qualcomm, including the Company’s current CEO as well as his father, the Company’s founder and a Qualcomm director until 2012 are widely reported to be politically active and in recent years have donated more than $2 million of their personal funds in furtherance of political purposes," the allegation said.

DiNapoli dropped the case in February 2013 after Jacobs agreed to post semi-annual disclosures of Qualcomm's payments to influence on its website.

“While Qualcomm has been developing a new policy on disclosure of political expenditures for some time, engaging with the Common Retirement Fund has been helpful," the younger Jacobs said in a statement.

The list of San Diego politically-related causes benefiting handsomely from Jacobs-steered Qualcomm largesse has run the gamut from San Diego State's public broadcasting operation KPBS and the non-profit Voice of San Diego website to Nathan Fletcher.

The onetime Republican Assemblyman left the party during a self-styled independent race for mayor, and turned Democrat, the party of the Jacobs family, before another failed try for the same office in the fall of 2013.

During that campaign, the GOP Lincoln Club attacked Fletcher for accepting what the Republicans alleged to be a do-nothing job at Qualcomm, drawing a sharp denial from Paul Jacobs.

"I was outraged to learn that the Lincoln Club of San Diego – a supposedly pro-business political group – would fund a political hit piece that unfairly and incorrectly attacks one of San Diego’s largest employers," said the then-CEO in an October 2013 statement on company letterhead.

"The allegations about Nathan’s job are completely untrue, from the erroneous salary figure to the outrageous allegation that his is a 'no-show' job," asserted Jacobs.

“While we do not disclose salary information, we have previously indicated that the figure reported is grossly exaggerated. Nathan’s salary is commensurate with other employees at his level. We do not hire “no show” employees. Our employees have always been the hardest working in the industry and our success reflects that culture.”

After Fletcher's defeat, father and son Jacobs, as well as a bevy of Qualcomm employees, embraced Republican mayor Kevin Faulconer, who paid back a series of suspiciously-timed political contributions by reviving Irwin's controversial Balboa Park traffic and parking makeover plan.

During the weeks following arrangement of a secret meeting between the GOP mayor and Irwin Jacobs in March 2016 regarding the Balboa Park project, campaign filings later revealed, $6150 materialized in Faulconer's campaign fund from no less than ten high-ranking Qualcomm executives, including Paul Jacobs, who kicked in $1000.

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Time’s up for Doubletime Recording Studio

Owner Jeff Forrest is trading El Cajon for Portugal
Irwin Jacobs
Irwin Jacobs

The finale may finally be coming into view for cell phone chip making giant Qualcomm, currently the target of a hostile takeover campaign. Echoes of the company's outsized influence on San Diego politics are likely to resonate for years.

Officials of both parties have stuffed their portfolios with Qualcomm stock, at least some allegedly purchased based on insider tips, keeping their hands out for political gifts and gratuities that the company has donated.

News that Paul Jacobs, a son of Qualcomm co-founder Irwin Jacobs, is stepping down as chairman of the board won't necessarily spell the end of his family's power plays here, although tapping the company treasury could be a thing of the past.

It's been five years since New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, acting on behalf of the state employee pension fund, sued Qualcomm, demanding "to inspect the company’s books and records to determine how shareholder funds are being spent for political purposes."

Sponsored
Sponsored

The suit charged that the younger Jacobs, then chairman and chief executive of Qualcomm, was less than transparent about how shareholders' political money was deployed.

"Senior figures associated with Qualcomm, including the Company’s current CEO as well as his father, the Company’s founder and a Qualcomm director until 2012 are widely reported to be politically active and in recent years have donated more than $2 million of their personal funds in furtherance of political purposes," the allegation said.

DiNapoli dropped the case in February 2013 after Jacobs agreed to post semi-annual disclosures of Qualcomm's payments to influence on its website.

“While Qualcomm has been developing a new policy on disclosure of political expenditures for some time, engaging with the Common Retirement Fund has been helpful," the younger Jacobs said in a statement.

The list of San Diego politically-related causes benefiting handsomely from Jacobs-steered Qualcomm largesse has run the gamut from San Diego State's public broadcasting operation KPBS and the non-profit Voice of San Diego website to Nathan Fletcher.

The onetime Republican Assemblyman left the party during a self-styled independent race for mayor, and turned Democrat, the party of the Jacobs family, before another failed try for the same office in the fall of 2013.

During that campaign, the GOP Lincoln Club attacked Fletcher for accepting what the Republicans alleged to be a do-nothing job at Qualcomm, drawing a sharp denial from Paul Jacobs.

"I was outraged to learn that the Lincoln Club of San Diego – a supposedly pro-business political group – would fund a political hit piece that unfairly and incorrectly attacks one of San Diego’s largest employers," said the then-CEO in an October 2013 statement on company letterhead.

"The allegations about Nathan’s job are completely untrue, from the erroneous salary figure to the outrageous allegation that his is a 'no-show' job," asserted Jacobs.

“While we do not disclose salary information, we have previously indicated that the figure reported is grossly exaggerated. Nathan’s salary is commensurate with other employees at his level. We do not hire “no show” employees. Our employees have always been the hardest working in the industry and our success reflects that culture.”

After Fletcher's defeat, father and son Jacobs, as well as a bevy of Qualcomm employees, embraced Republican mayor Kevin Faulconer, who paid back a series of suspiciously-timed political contributions by reviving Irwin's controversial Balboa Park traffic and parking makeover plan.

During the weeks following arrangement of a secret meeting between the GOP mayor and Irwin Jacobs in March 2016 regarding the Balboa Park project, campaign filings later revealed, $6150 materialized in Faulconer's campaign fund from no less than ten high-ranking Qualcomm executives, including Paul Jacobs, who kicked in $1000.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

The greatest symphonist of them all

Havergal Brian wrote over 30 of them
Next Article

Gonzo Report: Bob Long played piano for Tina Turner and Ray Charles

And he got the crowd shaking at InZane Brewery
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader