A Marriott sign in Salt Lake CityDouglas C. Pizac/AP
The Trump supporters who stormed the US Capitol building were driven by the baseless belief that Democrats stole the election. They were egged on by President Donald Trump, who for weeks has claimed that vote-counting was rigged. But they were also encouraged by Republican members of Congress who voted against certifying the election results.
Now, major corporations are suspending their donations to these Republicans, according to a report by Popular Information, a newsletter launched by former ThinkProgress Editor in Chief Judd Legum.
One hundred and forty seven Republican members of Congress, including eight senators, objected to certifying results of the Electoral College in at least one state. These senators included Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, Rick Scott of Florida, Roger Marshall of Kansas, John Kennedy of Louisiana, Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi, Josh Hawley of Missouri, Ted Cruz of Texas, and Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming.
Popular Information surveyed 144 corporations whose political action committees had donated to these senators in the past, and asked whether they would continue to do so after the insurrection at the Capitol this week. Here’s a look at how some of them responded:
Companies That Will Suspend Donations
Four companies said they would stop giving to the 147 members of Congress who refused to certify election results.
- Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, which provides health insurance to millions of people across the country. During the 2020 election cycle, its PAC gave $10,000 to Tuberville, $1,000 to Marshall, and $500 to Hawley.
- Marriott, the hotel company. Its PAC gave $1,000 to Hawley’s campaign and $1,000 to his leadership PAC in 2020.
- Commerce Bancshares, the bank holding company best known for operating Commerce Bank. Its PAC gave $2,500 to Marshall in 2020. “At this time, we have suspended all support for officials who have impeded the peaceful transfer of power,” a company spokesperson said in a statement to Popular Information.
- Boston Scientific, a medical device company, will suspend all its PAC activity “in light of recent events.”
Companies That Condemned the Republicans But Did Not Immediately Promise to Suspend Donations
Four companies criticized the Republicans who refused to certify election results on Wednesday, and said they would take these actions into account when deciding future political donations. But the companies, which have donated to the at least some of the eight senators previously, did not go so far as to promise to suspend donations to them.
- Bank of America
- Berkshire Hathaway Energy
- Ford
- AT&T
Other Companies That Did Not Immediately Promise to Suspend Donations
But they said they are currently reviewing their policies around political giving.
- CVS Health
- ExxonMobil
- FedEx
- Amgen
- Target
Companies That Declined to Comment
- Hogan Lovells
- 3M
- New York Life
Companies That Did Not Respond
Legume reports that 127 companies still have yet to respond to him, including Airbnb, Amazon, Hallmark Cards, General Motors, iHeartmedia, Safeway, Sierra Nevada Corporation, United Airlines, and Verizon. You can see the full list of companies in the Popular Information post here, which also includes statements from the corporations that did respond and more information about their political giving.
This post has been updated to clarify a reference to defense contractor Sierra Nevada Corporation.
