Welcome to Axis ProRata, where we take just 10 minutes to get you smarter on the collision of tech,

business, and politics. I'm Dan Permac. On today's show, investors sound off on social responsibility

and a fond farewell. But first, Mayor Pete's McKinsey problem.

So when Pete Buttigieg ended his run as an Oxford scholar,

and before he became a Navy lieutenant deployed to Afghanistan,

he spent around three years working with global consulting firm McKinsey.

So what did Buttigieg actually do with McKinsey,

which advises both corporate and government clients?

Well, we don't know, because Buttigieg won't tell tell us due to non-compete agreements that all McKinsey consultants sign to protect both the confidentiality of firm information and of client information.

Now, the Buttigieg campaign has publicly asked McKinsey to lift this restriction on his work, but so far the firm has refused. And some of Buttigieg's rivals and media critics are beginning to jump on this lack of transparency.

Particularly in light of a new ProPublica report, that McKinsey's past work with the Department of Immigration and Customs Enforcement

included money-saving proposals such as cuts to food and medical care for detainees.

The bottom line here is that the increasing collision of private industry and public service

creates inherent conflicts, as we saw with past presidential candidacies of both Mitt Romney and Donald Trump.

The question now for Buttigieg is how or if he plans to resolve them.

In 15 seconds, we'll go deeper with Matt Pierce, a national correspondent for the LA Times.

But first, this.

Axios chief technology correspondent, Ina Freed, shares breaking news and analysis on the

most consequential companies and players in tech, from the Valley to DC.

Subscribe to get smarter faster at signup.axios.com.

And now, back to the pro rata podcast.

We're joined now by Matt Pierce, a national correspondent for the LA Times.

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