Chicago City Wire

Steve Cortes, a Wall Street veteran and former CNBC commentary, has been hired to provide political and market analysis to the Fox Business Network (FBN) and Fox News Channel (FNC), the broadcasting company announced recently.

  

Cortes is a financial adviser with more than 20 years of experience and was on Donald Trump’s Hispanic Advisory Council during his presidential campaign. He continues to serve as an informal adviser to the president.

“I will focus mainly on politics, with an emphasis on issues important to Latinos -- like immigration, school choice, and the border -- as well as general economic topics like growth, taxes and trade," he said of his new role with Fox. He said he will also provide information about business news, particularly as it relates to stocks.

Cortes worked extensively with the Trump campaign leading up to the election, reaching out to the Latino community for support. He believes his intimate knowledge of Trump’s campaign sets him apart from other contributors on the network and sees his role as an opportunity to continue outreach efforts in the Hispanic community.

“Then-candidate Trump leaned on our council for advice and advocacy on issues important to Latinos," Cortes said. "I care deeply about school choice because far too many Hispanics are trapped in failing public schools. He listened intently and I believe my ideas on school choice informed his campaign pronouncements and his selection of Betsy DeVos to be secretary of education."

Cortes said he sees the network as an ideal platform for helping the new administration connect with the public.

"As a Hispanic, urban Trump supporter, I hope to build a bridge between the White House and minority communities, especially in cities, to promote new policies and to unleash opportunity in many presently blighted neighborhoods through reforms like school choice, lower regulatory burdens and faster overall economic growth,” Cortes said.

Cortes believes Trump’s presidency will be positive for the Hispanic community, the country and financial markets overall. 

 “Trump shocked the world by winning," he said. "Since the election, he's also shocked Wall Street, which widely predicted a Trump win would yield huge market losses. Instead, his policy prescriptions, particularly cutting taxes and stifling regulations, have convinced global capital to pour into U.S. stocks, which is a huge win for our economy and our whole country."

The economy should also benefit from Trump's business acumen, Cortes said.

"Just as important as the policies, he's also instilling in businesses -- from mom and pop stores to giant companies -- an optimism that America can truly grow again and break out of this mediocrity of slow growth we've endured during the last two administrations,” he said.