Goldman Sachs is officially Team Clinton

Partners at Wall Street giant Goldman Sachs are free to support the candidate of their choice in the 2016 presidential election — as long as that candidate isn't Donald Trump. Per an internal memo which went to top executives at the bank last week, partners "are prohibited from engaging in political activities and/or making campaign contributions to candidates running for state and local offices, as well as sitting state and local officials running for federal office."

As critics have been quick to point out, that strikes out the Trump/Pence campaign, as vice presidential nominee Mike Pence is currently serving as governor of Indiana, while leaving support for Hillary Clinton — long known to be a Wall Street favorite — on the table. Making bad optics worse, the memo specifically mentions Trump/Pence as its sole specific example of an off-limits campaign.

Ironically, given the suggestions of favoritism with which its leak has been met, the memo's stated goal is to avoid any implication of a "pay to play" relationship between the firm and elected officials. A recipient of billions in bailout dollars following the 2008 financial crisis, Goldman is known for having unusually close ties with Washington, particularly with the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department.

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