Manchin & Sinema attend Davos luncheon with CEOs

DAVOS, Switzerland — U.S. lawmakers quietly attended a private lunch at the World Economic Forum on Monday that featured dozens of influential business leaders, according to people with direct knowledge of the matter.

Participating lawmakers included members of the U.S. congressional delegation attending the annual confab for the elite and wealthy in Davos, including Sens. Joe Manchin, DW.Va., Chris Coons, D-Del., Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz. and some members of the House of Representatives, these people explained. Republican Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp also attended the event, one of the people said.

Coons, Manchin, Sinema and Kemp are among the US officials scheduled to participate in panel sessions at this year’s conference. This private event on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum is often a meeting place between CEOs, billionaires and government officials.

Coons and Manchin each addressed a crowd of company leaders at the luncheon, said attendees, who declined to speak about the private meeting.

Coons was discussing U.S. aid given to Ukraine after the Russian invasion while Manchin, who chairs the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, called for American energy independence, this person said. Congress passed $40 billion in additional aid to Ukraine last year.

The private lunch was held at Hotel Schatzalp, which is accessible primarily by riding the funicular, or tram, up the property, people familiar with the gathering said. One attendee said the meeting took place in the hotel’s Belle Epoque restaurant, with salmon and beef dishes for attendees.

Business leaders come from various backgrounds, including Hewlett Packard Enterprise CEO Antonio Neri, Klaus Schwab, executive chairman of the World Economic Forum and heads of various non-governmental organizations, among others, this participant said. .

Coons told CNBC on the sidelines before lunch that members of his congressional delegation were going to have lunch “with about 50 CEOs.” He did not say when the executive was scheduled to arrive.

A Hewlett Packard Enterprise representative confirmed Neri’s arrival. Representatives for the lawmakers mentioned in this story did not immediately return calls for comment.

Hotel Schatzalp was first opened as a luxury sanatorium for wealthy clients in 1900 by Dutch businessman Willem Jan Holsboer, according to the property’s website.

The modern Art Nouveau structure, located above the highest city in Europe at 1900 meters above sea level, was converted into a hotel in 1953.