Political giving:
Many tech firms have paused making any donations.
Facebook, Google, Airbnb and Lyft are among Bay Area companies freezing some political donations in the wake of last week’s U. S. Capitol rampage by a mob incited by President Trump.
The moves, along with similar ones from other major corporations nationwide, could prove significant, since businessbacked political action committees provide considerable funding for the campaigns of incumbent members of Congress. However, some PACs are freezing all donations, which would hurt all candidates, rather than just those who tried to overturn the election — although ultimately those PACs may decide to eschew donations to those considered complicit in the mayhem. Many tech PACs regularly donate to candidates on both sides of the aisle.
By contrast, the current spate of online banishments are more surgically targeted, with Twitter, Facebook, Amazon Web Services and various web security, hosting and payment companies saying they will no longer provide services to President Trump and to organizations that foment violence.
“Over the past four years, there’s been an uncomfortable dynamic for businesses with the
Trump administration,” said David McCuan, professor of political science at Sonoma State University.
The paused donations both reflect anger over the tumult Trump encouraged and are “about pivoting away from this administration to the next one,” McCuan said. They also show companies taking next steps in trying to be more accountable in areas such as diversity and transparency, he said.
Facebook, Google and Lyft said they would pause political donations, while Airbnb said it would withhold support from members of Congress who voted against certification of the presidential election results.
“We have frozen all NetPAC political contributions while we review and reassess its policies following last week’s deeply troubling events,” Google spokesman José Castañeda said of its longstanding political action committee.
Microsoft, the Bellevue, Wash., software giant with substantial Bay Area operations, including LinkedIn, is also pausing donations “until after it assesses the implications of last week’s events,” it said in a statement. “The PAC regularly pauses its donations in the first quarter of a new Congress, but it will take additional steps this year to consider these recent events and consult with employees.”
“Following last week’s awful violence in D. C., we are pausing all of our PAC contributions for at least the current quarter, while we review our policies,” Facebook said in a statement.
“Airbnb strongly condemns last week’s attack on the U. S. Capitol and the efforts to undermine our democratic process,” the San Francisco vacation rental company said in a statement. “We will continue to uphold our community policies by banning violent hate group members when we learn of such memberships, and the Airbnb PAC will update its framework and withhold support from those who voted against the certification of the presidential election results.”
Lyft is holding on all political donations at the moment, said Susan Kennedy, vice president of communications. The ridehailing company “will review ( future contributions) in light of last week’s tragic events,” she said in an email. “We are also reviewing our membership in the Republican Attorneys General Association. ... If any membership funds were used to advocate for challenges to the electoral college vote, we will rescind our membership in RAGA.” Lyft also belongs to the Democratic Attorneys General Association.
San Francisco’s Salesforce also said it has paused PAC contributions.
Seattle’s Amazon, which booted socialmedia platform Parler off of its webhosting services because of its ties to the Capitol rampage, also is making a statement with its donations.
“Given the unacceptable attempt to undermine a legitimate democratic process, the Amazon PAC has suspended contributions to any member of Congress who voted to override the results of the U. S. Presidential election,” Amazon said in a statement. “We intend to discuss our concerns directly with those members we have previously supported and will evaluate their responses as we consider future PAC contributions.”
Other major corporations are likewise withholding political donations for a time.
Among financial institutions, JP Morgan Chase, Goldman Sachs and Citigroup are temporarily halting donations. “We will not support candidates who do not respect the rule of law,” Citi said in a letter, according to Axios. Wells Fargo and Bank of America said they are reviewing contribution strategies. Morgan Stanley is ceasing contributions to senators and representatives who voted against certifying the Electoral College results.
Marriott International, Dow, Blue Cross Blue Shield and AT& T are pausing donations to the members of Congress who voted against certifying the election results.
Some companies already eschew political donations.
Twitter’s PAC had been inactive for some time and was officially closed in November. “In line with our belief that political influence should be earned, not bought, Twitter will officially close its Political Action Committee; # PAC,” the company said at that time. “# PAC has not made donations to candidates since 2018 and is donating the remaining funds to support nonpartisan voter registration activities.”
Apple does not make political contributions to candidates or parties, the company said on its website. Square also does not have a political action committee.
The top PAC donors to the 147 Republican senators and representatives who objected to certifying the Electoral College results include numerous corporations and trade groups, according to OpenSecrets. org, a project of the Center for Responsive Politics.
They include the American Bankers Association, National Association of Realtors, Koch Industries, AT& T, National Auto Dealers Association, Comcast, National Beer Wholesalers and Northrop Grumman.
“Business PACs donate most of their money to incumbents in both parties, particularly those in safe seats like many of the Republican objectors,” OpenSecrets wrote.
“If major business PACs decided to cut off funds to the Republican objectors, they would severely hurt some of those lawmakers’ fundraising efforts,” the website said, noting that five of the Republican objectors brought in more than 60% of their campaign funds from business PACs in 2020.