Woody Johnson


Robert Wood "Woody" Johnson IV is an American businessman serving as the United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom. He is a great-grandson of Robert Wood Johnson I, and a billionaire heir to the Johnson & Johnson pharmaceutical fortune.
He is the co-owner of the New York Jets of the National Football League along with his brother, Christopher, and is the Chairman and Chief Executive of the Johnson Company, Inc., a private investment firm founded in 1978.

Early life

Johnson was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey, United States. He is the son of Betty and Robert Wood Johnson III, president of Johnson & Johnson for four years. Johnson grew up with four siblings, Keith Johnson, Billy Johnson, Elizabeth "Libet" Johnson, and Christopher Wold Johnson, in affluent areas of northern New Jersey, and attended the Millbrook School. He graduated from the University of Arizona. Johnson then worked menial summer jobs at Johnson & Johnson with the expectation of ascending to the top of the family business.

Career

Sports

In January 2000, Johnson purchased the Jets for $635 million, at the time the third-highest price for a professional sports team and the highest for a New York professional sports team. Johnson outbid the offer of $612 million placed by Charles Dolan, the owner of the Madison Square Garden, New York Knicks, and New York Rangers. Forbes valued the team at $3.2 billion as of September 2019.
After buying the Jets, Johnson announced plans to move them to the proposed West Side Stadium in Manhattan. However, after the project's defeat in 2005, Johnson announced the Jets would move to a new Meadowlands Stadium as an equal partner with the Giants. The new stadium opened on April 10, 2010, with naming rights being acquired by MetLife. Johnson served on the NFL Commissioner search committee in which a list of 185 candidates to succeed Paul Tagliabue was narrowed down to the final choice of Roger Goodell.

Private ventures and legal problems

Johnson is the chairman and chief executive of the Johnson Company, Inc., a private investment firm founded in 1978. In August 2006, Johnson was asked to testify before the Senate's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations regarding his participation in a tax avoidance scheme. A Senate report said that Johnson, along with others, was able to buy, for relatively small fees, roughly $2 billion in capital losses that they used to erase taxable gains they garnered from stock sales. The U.S. Treasury lost an estimated $300 million in revenue as a result. In a statement, Johnson said he had been advised by his lawyers in 2000 that the transaction "was consistent with the Tax Code." After the Internal Revenue Service challenged that view in 2003, Johnson in 2006 settled with the IRS and agreed to pay 100 percent of the tax due plus interest.
Johnson was the committee president of the Pre-Commissioning Unit for the ship.

Politics

Fundraising for Republicans

Johnson has given more than $1 million to various Republican candidates and committees. In May 2008, he orchestrated a fundraiser in New York City that brought in $7 million in a single evening for John McCain's presidential campaign, by far the largest amount collected up to that point by a campaign that had been struggling to raise money. Johnson also provided significant funding to 2008 Republican National Convention host committee; from a $10 million shortfall, Johnson contributed personally and solicited friends to assist in covering the convention deficit. In 2011, Johnson endorsed former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney in the 2012 Republican presidential primaries.
In September 2013, Johnson hosted a fundraiser for the Republican National Committee at his home in New York City.
In the 2016 Republican presidential primaries, Johnson initially endorsed Jeb Bush, and in June 2015, was named the National Finance Chairman for Bush's 2016 presidential campaign. After initially endorsing Jeb Bush, Johnson in May 2016 endorsed Donald Trump for president.
Johnson had by August 2019 donated $1.5 million to Donald Trump's campaign and inaugural committee.
In February 2020, Johnson gave $575,000 to a fundraising committee for Trump's 2020 re-election campaign, and $355,000 to the RNC. In May 2020, he gave $1 million to America First Action, Inc., a pro-Trump super PAC.

United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom

Appointment

On January 19, 2017, President-elect Donald Trump announced that he planned to nominate Johnson to become United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom. On June 22, 2017, Trump nominated Johnson for the position. Prior to becoming ambassador, he had no diplomatic experience. Following a hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee, Johnson was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on August 3, 2017, by voice vote. He was sworn in by Vice President Mike Pence on August 21, 2017, in the Oval Office. Johnson presented his credentials to Queen Elizabeth II on November 8, 2017.

Inspector General investigation into alleged racist and sexist comments

It was reported in July 2020 that Johnson was being investigated by the State Department inspector general over both sexist and racist comments he made to embassy staff. He had been reported to have held official meetings at men-only clubs in London, which meant that female staff members would not be able to attend. Johnson denied the allegations. According to the New York Times, half a dozen current and former embassy employees said that Johnson made Black and female staff members uncomfortable by making remarks about their appearances or race. One diplomat said he made disparaging remarks about Black History Month.

Chlorinated-chicken incident

In March 2019, Johnson wrote an article in the Daily Telegraph saying that chlorinated chicken was a "public safety no-brainer" and that health fears over hormone-fed beef were "myths". This came after he urged the UK to open up to the US agriculture market after the British exit from the European Union and ignore the "smear campaign" of those with "their own protectionist agenda". Johnson was criticised by several agriculture standard boards, such as the Red Tractor Assurance whose CEO, Jim Moseley stated the UK's food standards were "now under threat from... the United States food lobby" and the National Farmers Union who said it was "imperative" that UK food standards remain high.

British Open at Trump Turnberry

As ambassador, Johnson sought to have the lucrative British Open golf tournament moved to Trump's Turnberry Golf Resort in Scotland, raising the idea with Secretary of State for Scotland David Mundell. The New York Times reported that Trump asked Johnson to "get the British Open for me." Johnson was warned not to raise the question with the UK government by his deputy, Lewis Lukens, who cited the legal and ethical concerns in furthering the president's personal financial interests; Johnson reportedly did so anyway, unsuccessfully. Lukens reportedly documented his concerns to State Department officials; Johnson forced out Lukens several months later, before the scheduled end of his tenure in London. The report that Johnson used his position as ambassador to promote the president's personal business interests sparked an inquiry by the State Department inspector general's office.

Personal life

In 1977, Johnson married former fashion model Nancy Sale Johnson. They had three children before divorcing in 2001. In early 2010, daughter Casey Johnson died of diabetic ketoacidosis. He started a research foundation, the Alliance for Lupus Research, after his daughter Jaime was found to have lupus.
In 2009, Johnson married Suzanne Ircha Johnson, a former actress and equities managing director at Sandler O'Neill & Partners. They have two children.
Johnson has homes in Bedminster Township, New Jersey, and Manhattan, New York City.