Companies Pull Back Political Giving Following Capitol Violence (NYT); Corporate Revolt Shakes Political Fundraising World (CNN)
Enclosed for your information is an article titled “Companies Pull Back Political Giving Following Capitol Violence,” published here by The New York Times on January 11, 2021, and an article titled “Corporate revolt shakes political fundraising world,” published here by CNN on January 11, 2021.
According to the New York Times article:
The moves are notable because corporations and their employees are active players in the political process, making campaign contributions through PACs and helping politicians raise funds in myriad ways. But it was not clear how long the pause would last — the first quarter is the slowest period of the cycle — and whether the companies would quietly roll back the changes after public attention had shifted.
In the last election cycle, American corporate PACs gave $91 million to members of the House of Representatives, accounting for 8 percent of that chamber’s total funds raised, and $27 million to senators, accounting for 3 percent of the total, according to figures compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics.
“Corporate PAC money is usually an arm of the lobbying interests of the corporation and is used to buy access and influence,” said Fred Wertheimer, president of Democracy 21, which advocates for campaign finance reform. “If that were to fundamentally change, and if small donors became a much bigger part of financing elections, we could potentially face a fundamental change in the financing of elections.”
According to the CNN article:
Companies such Google, Coca-Cola and UPS all have pledged to suspend contributions across the board, while others took aim specifically at lawmakers they viewed as complicit in President Donald Trump’s effort to disrupt the certification of Joe Biden’s election. […]
Business PACs are significant players in politics, accounting for more than $360 million in federal contributions during the 2020 cycle — with about 57% of the money flowing to GOP candidates, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics, which tracks political donations.
“I’ve never seen anything like this,” said Fred Wertheimer, who runs the watchdog group Democracy 21, of the corporate retreat in the wake of the riot by pro-Trump supporters. “The key is: Is this temporary or is this real?”
“To do this for two or three weeks, and after the heat falls off, go back to business as usual isn’t going to solve anyone’s problems,” he added.
Wertheimer and others in the campaign-finance reform world said the corporate reexamination could provide a needed push to overhaul election laws and center them on small-dollar contributions. A measure advanced by Democrats, who will soon control both congressional chambers and the White House, would give federal candidates as much as a 6-to-1 match of public funds for small donations.
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