Boeing nominates former Trump UN ambassador Nikki Haley to board

Bruce Smith | AP

Then South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley speaks during the dedication of Boeing Co.’s $750 million final assembly plant in North Charleston, S.C. on Friday, June 10, 2011.

Boeing announced Tuesday the nomination of former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley for election to the company’s board of directors.

Haley served as ambassador to the U.N. under President Donald Trump from January 2017 until December, when she resigned from the role.

“It’s an honor to have the opportunity to contribute to Boeing’s continued success as a cutting edge industry leader and a great American company,” Haley said in a statement.

Boeing Chairman and CEO Dennis Muilenburg welcomed her nomination and said in a statement that “Haley brings to Boeing an outstanding record of achievement in government, industry partnership, and successfully driving economic prosperity.”

In her October resignation letter, Haley said she would be taking a “step up” into the private sector after leaving the U.N. Since then, Haley is quoting $200,000 for domestic speaking engagements, CNBC reported in January. Haley is one of many Trump officials who have passed through his cabinet and into the private sector.

Shares of Boeing are up more than 200 percent since Trump’s election in November 2016 versus the S&P 500’s 30.6 percent gain. That may come as little surprise to Wall Street traders who have tracked the administration’s emphasis on defense spending and national security.

Last August, Trump approved a massive defense policy bill that authorized a top-line budget of $717 billion to cover a variety of spending. The 2019 National Defense Authorization Act included $616.9 billion for the Pentagon’s base budget, $69 billion for overseas contingency operations funding and $21.9 billion for nuclear weapons programs under the Energy Department. Boeing also won a $805 million contract last summer to build refueling drones to be based on aircraft carriers.

As South Carolina’s governor, Haley in 2013 helped Boeing establish new facilities in the state – most notably the company’s 787 Dreamliner aircraft manufacturing complex. Boeing had nearly 7,000 employees and contractors in South Carolina as of last year.

– CNBC’s
Tom Franck
contributed to this report.