US politics have long been a popular pathway to lucrative board seats at major corporations.
This week, former speaker of the US House of Representatives Paul Ryan became the latest ex-elected official to move to the private sector. The Republican lawmaker, who left Congress in January, is joining the board of the new Fox Corporation, owner of Fox News and Fox Broadcasting. (Fox became a new standalone company on Tuesday, as Disney prepared to close the deal for many of former 21st Century Fox’s movie and TV assets.)
But while many US politicians have gone on to corporate-board life—including vice president Dan Quayle and defense secretary Chuck Hagel—some of the companies they ended up at may surprise you.