Apr 1, 2008Political Money: The Need for Director Oversight
April 1, 2008 The Conference Board Executive Action Alert
By Bruce Freed and Karl J. Sandstrom
When it comes to corporate governance, one area often overlooked
is company involvement in politics. The amount of money companies
spend for political purposes is relatively...
more
Mar 6, 2008Boards Should Scrutinize Political Spending
March 6, 2008 BusinessWeek
By Bruce Freed and Karl J. Sandstrom
Until recently, directors have paid scant attention to company political spending. Because the amount corporations devote to politics is quite small and might seem immaterial, especially as a proportion of...
more...
Jul 9, 2007American business needs an election cash code
July 9, 2007 Financial Times
By Bruce Freed and Bennett Freeman
Last year, Robert Kelner, a leading Washington election lawyer, warned: "More than in the past, the Department of Justice seems to be trying very hard to tie campaign contributions to legislative acts by...
more...
May 1, 2007It Pays to Get Ahead of the Curve on Political Disclosure
May-June 2007 Executive Counsel
By Bruce Freed
Corporate political spending is the subject of increased scrutiny by the press, regulatory authorities and prosecutors. With heightened attention come escalating legal and reputational risks.
more
Oct 1, 2006Social Investment- Highlights from 2006 Proxy Season
October 1, 2006 GreenMoneyJournal.com
By Timothy Smith and Bruce Freed
The 2006 proxy season was memorable with numerous highlights and its share of lowlights. Shareowners continued to insure their voices were heard and there were numerous examples of management and...
more...
Sep 1, 2006Trade Associations and Oversight of Company Political Spending
September 1, 2006 NACD Directors Monthly
By Bruce Freed and Jamie Carroll The effort to limit corporate money in politics has created new channels for corporate political involvement, many hidden from public view.
Prominent among these are trade associations. In response to...
more...
Jan 1, 2006Curbing corporate political spending migraines
January 2006 Magazine of Business for Social Responsibility
By Bruce F. Freed
"Soft money" is causing migraines for companies. The term commonly is used to describe corporate treasury funds that are contributed to political candidates and committees. It's a particular...
more...
May 10, 2010Funds Want More Disclosure of Railroad's Political Spending
May 10, 2010 Virginia Pilot
by Robert McCabe
For the second year in a row, a group of New York City pension funds has asked
shareholders of Norfolk Southern Corp. to push the railroad's board of directors to better
disclose the company's spending on political activities.
more
May 7, 2010WellCare's Investor Wants Disclosure
May 7, 2010 Health News Florida
by Jim Saunders and Mike Wells
A New York-based investor is pushing to require WellCare Health Plans --- a major contributor to Florida politicians and parties --- to disclose more information about how it spends company money on political...
more
Apr 5, 2010Shareholder Groups Seek to Limit Corporate Contributions
April 5, 2010 Christian Science Monitor
by Margaret Price
Shareholder groups aim to keep a lid on companies’ political spending in the wake of Citizens United v. the Federal Election Commission, a case in which the Supreme Court eased restrictions on corporate campaign spending.
more
Mar 11, 2010Testimony of Professor John C. Coffee, Jr.
March 11, 2010 Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance, and Government Sponsored Entities of the House Financial Services Committee
by John C. Coffee, Jr.
I am pleased and honored to be invited to testify here today. My message is
simple: Congress cannot successfully...
more
Feb 23, 2010CPA Demands Political Donations Disclosure
February 23, 2010 Corporate Secretary
Last week the Center for Political Accountability (CPA) sent 430 letters to members of the S&P 500 who do not yet disclose their political spending. The letter, whose numerous signatories include the Council of Institutional Investors, warns...
more
Feb 22, 2010Valuing Corporate Politics
February 22, 2010 Pensions and Investments
by Roger Schillerstrom
The U.S. Supreme Court decision Jan. 21 relaxing legal constraints on corporate political advocacy spending makes disclosure of such spending more important than ever.
more
Feb 9, 2010Investors Seek More Disclosure on Political Spending
February 9, 2010 Wall Street Journal
by Scott Thurm
An effort by activist shareholders to prod companies to disclose political contributions is
taking on new urgency following last month's Supreme Court decision loosening
restrictions on corporate political spending.
more
Feb 5, 2010Global Proxy Watch Newsletter
February 5, 2010 Global Proxy Watch
US shareowner activists have been galvanized into collective action by Citizens United, the surprise US Supreme Court decision lifting most restrictions on corporate political spending...
more
Jan 29, 2010Corporate Campaign Spending: The Buck Stops Where?
January 29, 2010 AARP Bulletin Today
by Bill Hogan
In a game-changing decision handed down on Jan. 22, the U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way for corporations big and small to pump as much money as they want into election advertising that explicitly promotes or attacks...
more
Jan 29, 2010Corporate Campaign Spending: The Buck Stops Where?
January 29, 2010 AARP Bulletin
By Bill Hogan
In a game-changing decision handed down on Jan. 22, the U.S. Supreme
Court cleared the way for corporations big and small to pump as much
money as they want into election advertising that explicitly promotes or
attacks...
more
Jan 28, 2010Good Governance is Key to Policing Corporate Political Activities
January 21, 2010 The Council of Institutional Investors: The Voice of Corporate Governance
In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled today that
the government may not bar companies, labor unions
and other organizations from using their general
treasuries to fund...
more
Jan 22, 2010Day After: SCOTUS Ruling Not So Bad
January 22, 2010 Politico
by Jeanne Cummings
New money will flow into campaigns this year as a result of Thursday’s Supreme Court
decision, but will the impact be as dramatic as all the hyperventilating in Washington
suggests?
more
Jan 21, 2010'Free at Last,' Business Says as Court Opens Campaign Spending
January 21, 2010 Bloomberg
by Lorraine Wollert and Jonathan Salant
Jan. 21 (Bloomberg) -- Business groups celebrated the potential for greater political
influence as labor unions and shareholder activists began looking for ways to counter a
U.S. Supreme Court ruling that...
more
Dec 14, 2009More Companies are Disclosing Their Political Activity
December 14, 2009 USA Today
by Fredreka Schouten
WASHINGTON- Drugmaker Merck's political action committee donated more than $572,000 to federal candidates in the 2008 election and racked up $4.6 million in expenses to lobby Congress and the executive branch last year,...
more
Nov 7, 2009Electon Spending: Reformers on Flood Watch
November 7, 2009 National Journal
by Sara Jerome
Doomsday scenarios from campaign finance reform advocates are enough to make you
grab hip waders. A pending Supreme Court decision, advocates say, could "open the
floodgates to unlimited corporate and union spending during...
more
Oct 24, 2009Corporate America's Enlightened Disclosure
October 24, 2009 National Journal
by Julie Kosterlitz
Six years ago, Bruce Freed embarked on a seemingly quixotic quest. The former Senate
investigator and newspaper columnist set out to get corporate America to reveal and
rethink the cash that it lavishes on the nation's...
more
Oct 22, 2009Shareholders Should Hear About Political Spending
October 22, 2009 Business Week
by Ciara Torres-Spellescy
On Sept. 9, about a month before the U.S. Supreme Court officially kicked off its 2009-
2010 term, the justices assembled to rehear a closely watched case about corporate
campaign spending. Citizens United v. Federal...
more
Oct 1, 2009Investors Urge Chamber Defections
October 1, 2009 Roll Call
By Anna Palmer
Activist shareholders are pressuring companies such as Nike to pull out of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, arguing that the trade group’s stance against climate change
legislation is incompatible with the companies’ own positions.
more
Jun 10, 2009Cash-for-clunkers deal moves ahead
June 10, 2009 Politico
By Lisa Lerer
A controversial auto bill that would reward consumers with tax credits for trading in their old cars and buying more-fuel-efficient ones passed the House on Tuesday, inching closer to becoming law.
more
Apr 17, 2009El Paso advocates disclosure standards
April 17, 2009 Houston Business Journal
By Greg Barr
Bruce Freed has been prodding publicly traded companies for five years to provide details of political expenditures using corporate funds. His Washington, D.C., advocacy group, the Center for Political Accountability, sent...
more
Mar 24, 2009Companies try to clean up their act
March 24, 2009 Politico
By Jeanne Cummings
Having the wrong political benefactor can be as toxic an asset as a bundled bunch of subprime loans. Just ask the PMA Group, Kuchera Defense Systems and Kuchera Industries, all companies caught up in a federal investigation...
more
Feb 23, 2009Shareholder Advocates Want Political Disclosure
February 23, 2009 National Journal
By Robert Gettlin
The Center for Political Accountability, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that advocates for transparency and accountability in corporate political spending, has sent a letter to 19 financial companies that received...
more
Dec 17, 2008Measuring Corporate Accountability
December 17, 2008 National Journal
By Bara Vaida
Companies over the years have gotten caught up in controversy by providing monetary support for hot-button state ballot measures. The most recent companies to get embroiled in such measures are Bolthouse Farms, Pacific Gas &...
more...
Jun 1, 2008When Political Giving Doesn't Pay
June 1, 2008 Directorship
By Aaron Bernstein
As the 2008 presidential election hits full stride, your company may be inclined to shell out? through the legal channels of PACs, 527s, and other avenues?to the candidate perceived to be in the best interest of your company or...
more...
May 29, 2008Corporations to Disclose Political Contributions
May 29,2008 New York Times Caucus blog
By Leslie Wayne
Boards of directors of Fortune 500 companies typically get involved in such matters as setting dividends, hiring executives and deciding on corporate strategy. But a new task has been added to the agenda of many...
more...
May 13, 2008Companies Start to Lift Veil on Political Spending
May 13, 2008 Washington Post
By Jeffrey H. Birnbaum
Ever wonder how much companies really spend to influence government through trade associations? Well, a few corporations are coming clean, or at least cleaner.
more...
Mar 14, 2008Political Blinders
March 14, 2008 Global Proxy Watch
By Stephen Davis
Should a company's board control its political spending, a task usually left to management? Some 62% of US directors think boards should oversee donations, and 57% think such spending should require board approval,
more
Feb 28, 2008Disclosing gifts to trade groups: the next big thing in governance?
February 28, 2008 Financial Week
By Jeff Nash
Five U.S. public companies have agreeed to disclose the donations they make to trade associations and other non-profits that are used for political purposes, bringing the total number of companies now providing such disclosure...
more...
Feb 28, 2008Companies to disclose political aid
February 28, 2008 Financial Times
By Francesco Guerrera
Five large US companies, including American Express and Xerox, will bow to shareholder pressure on Thursday and agree to disclose all their political spending.
more...
Jan 28, 2008Monsanto bears up to baring its political contributions
January 28, 2007 St. Louis Post-Dispatch
By David Nicklaus
A year ago, Monsanto resisted the idea of disclosing political contributions on its website. It said such reporting "would not be useful to shareowners and would be burdensome and an unnecessary expense to the...
more...
Jan 17, 2008Is your portfolio politically slanted?
January 17, 2008 Christian Science Monitor
By Laurent Belsie
Do you know the political slant of your portfolio? Every election cycle, US businesses pour hundreds of millions of dollars into campaigns, parties, and politically affiliated groups. Some of that money is...
more...
Jan 14, 2008Corporate Governance special report
January 14, 2008 Wall Street Journal
By Andrew Yurkovsky
The pace of companies adopting policies to disclose their political spending has quickened, with 18 more companies in the Standard & Poor's 500 index agreeing last year to disclose such spending. According to the...
more...
Nov 16, 2007Lifting the Curtain on Corporate Contributions
December 16, 2007 Conde Nast Portfolio.com
By Megan Barnett
During the first six months of 2007, Pfizer spent $128,969 from its corporate checkbook on political donations to Democratic and Republican politicians. It doled out another $614,300 to various party committees and...
more...
Aug 12, 2007Resolved: Public Corporations Shall Take Us Seriously
August 12, 2007 New York Times Sunday Magazine
By Dashka Slater
Daly's order, the Sisters of Saint Dominic of Caldwell, N.J., owns about 300 of the 5.5 billion Exxon Mobil shares outstanding, but she has used those few shares to keep the company talking about an issue that...
more...
Aug 1, 2007What's Next for Governance?
August 1, 2007 Institutional Shareholder Services
Investors and U.S. corporate issuers came together as never before in 2007 to address a wide range of concerns and to better align views on corporate best practices.
more...
Jun 4, 2007Proxy bids more than hot air
June 4, 2007 Financial Week
By Jeff Nash
With the 2008 election season ramping up, investors are increasingly asking companies to better disclose their political contributions?and in many cases, they?re getting what they asked for.
more...
May 1, 2007As You Sow 2007 Proxy Season Preview
May 1, 2007 As You Sow
Every year there are hundreds of shareholder proposals on social and environmental issues that are directly relevant to the missions of foundations. The Proxy Season Preview provides a thorough and useful source of information to help foundations identify...
more
Apr 11, 2007Industry Giants Opening Up on Politics
April 11, 2007 Roll Call
By Tory Newmyer
The transparency tide sweeping Capitol Hill is reaching corporate suites far outside the Beltway.
more...
Apr 4, 2007Major companies adopt political disclosure policies
April 4, 2007 Reuters
By Sarah Coffey
Major companies including DuPont (DD.N: Quote, Profile, Research)
and Pfizer Inc. (PFE.N: Quote, Profile, Research) will now disclose which politically linked trade associations they fund, adding to the list of corporations adopting...
more...
Apr 1, 2007Investors want facts on political donations
April 1, 2007 Financial Times
By Francesco Guerrera
Corporate America's traditional secrecy on political spending is under attack from an investor drive for greater transparency before the 2008 presidential election campaign.
more...
Mar 21, 2007Nonprofit Calls on Firms to Include Donation Rules in Codes of Conduct
March 21, 2007 Wall Street Journal
By Dean Treftz
A shareholder advocacy group is calling for companies to include rules on corporate political donations in their codes of conduct, in order to avoid potential legal problems and perhaps scandal.
more...
Mar 6, 2007A Peek Into Corporate America
March 6, 2007 The Washington Post
Not waiting for Congress to impose new disclosure laws, shareholder activists have persuaded some of the nation's largest companies to disclose their political spending on such things as issue campaigns. General Electric, Hewlett-Packard and...
more...
Jan 29, 2007Cutting Risk by Disclosing Political Donations
January 29, 2007 Politico.com
By Andrew Glass
In politics, it often pays to be ahead of the curve. That holds true for corporate governance too, even more so when politics enter the equation.
more...
Jan 28, 2007Monsanto bears up to baring its political contributions
January 28, 2007 St. Louis Post-Dispatch
By David Nicklaus
A year ago, Monsanto resisted the idea of disclosing political contributions on its website. It said such reporting "would not be useful to shareowners and would be burdensome and an unnecessary expense to the...
more...
Jan 24, 2007Home Depot Agrees to Disclose Political Donations
January 24, 2007 Bloomberg News Service
By Vineeta Anand
Home Depot Inc. agreed to disclose its political donations for the first time, one of several new policies that may help appease investors angered by former Chief Executive Officer Robert Nardelli's severance package.
more...
Nov 7, 2006Activists Say BP Breaking Promise on Campaign Donations
November 7, 2006 Dow Jones Newswires
By John M. Biers
BP PLC (BP), which vowed to refrain from making political donations in 2002, has come under renewed criticism over a series of recent U.S. contributions that shareholder activists say contradict its pledge.
more...
Aug 22, 2006Lifting the veil of secrecy on corporate political donations
August 22, 2006 Financial Times
By Francesco Guerrera
When President Theodore Roosevelt railed against business people for putting their fortunes "only to the basest of uses", he did not include currying political favour as one of the abominations of those "malefactors
of...
more...
May 31, 2006Does your company keep political secrets?
May 31, 2006 Fortune
By Marc Gunther
Transparency is a big trend these days in corporate America.
Under pressure from regulators, shareholders and activists, Fortune 500 companies are becoming more open about executive pay, the makeup of their workforce, the safety of their...
more...
May 14, 2006Secrets of Corporate Giving
May 14, 2006 Time
By Douglas Waller
Merck prides itself on being socially enlightened. The drugmaker gives its employees diversity training and extends health insurance to same-sex partners. But a report to be released this week by the Washington-based Center for Political...
more...
Apr 25, 2006Watchdog group makes quiet gains for transparency in corporate giving
April 25, 2006 The Hill
By Elana Schor
With ethics and campaign-finance reform making plenty of headlines
this year, one might think the watchdog Center for Political Accountability would be a household name inside the Beltway. But the
group operates mainly under the radar...
more...
Apr 5, 2006Investors Seek Clarity on Campaign Giving
April 5, 2006 Wall Street Journal
By Jeanne Cummings
As Congress debates new campaign-finance rules, shareholder groups
are pushing companies to do a better job of disclosing political donations.
more...
Mar 20, 2006More Firms' Political Ties Put Online
March 20, 2006 Los Angeles Times
By Jonathan Peterson
Under pressure from shareholder activists, a small but growing number of major U.S. companies have agreed to disclose their political donations on their corporate websites.
more...
Mar 10, 2006This Year's Proxy Issue: Political Contributions
March 10, 2006 American Banker
By Jim Cole
Shareholders are pushing Citigroup Inc. and several other banking companies this proxy season to fully disclose their political contributions.
more...
Jan 31, 2006Up Front
January 31, 2006 Business Week
By Nanette Byrnes
General Mills (GIS ) has become the latest company to agree to disclose its political donations -- and the sixth this year. It joins Amgen (AMGN ), Bristol-Myers Squibb, Staples, Southern Co. (SO), and McDonald's (MCD ) in...
more...
Jan 18, 2006Pressure On Boards to Oversee Soft Dollars Hardening in 2006
January 18, 2006 Dow Jones
By Tiffany Kary
As a political storm continues to gather over the dealings between former
House Majority Leader Tom DeLay and lobbyist Jack Abramoff, it isn't just politicians who need to be wary. Companies are also reassessing their political...
more...
Dec 16, 2005Shining Light on Corporate Political Gifts
December 16, 2005 The New York Times
By Floyd Norris
WHICH politicians - and which political causes - are your companies financing? Will those contributions come back to haunt them as prosecutors go after lobbyists for expenditures that could be deemed contributions - or...
more...
Sep 26, 2005Funds vote down political disclosure proxies
September 26, 2005 Reuters
Mutual funds, which hold more than 22 percent of U.S. corporate stock,
overwhelmingly voted against proposals to require corporations to disclose political contributions in the 2005 proxy season, a new study found.
more...
Jun 15, 2005Missing in Action?
June 15, 2005 Roll Call
By Tory Newmyer
NAM promised to fight vigorously for Bush's judges. Or did it?
more
Jun 1, 2005Proponents Score Several Wins in Spring Season
June/July 2005 IRRC's Corporate Social Issues Reporter
By Carolyn Mathiasen and Meg Voorhes
The spring 2005 proxy season for corporate responsibility issues was notable for a new campaign, led by AFSCME and the state of Minnesota, questioning drug companies on their policies...
more...
May 1, 2005J&J, Schering-Plough Boards Will Oversee Donations
May 1, 2005 Board Alert
Following the lead set by Morgan Stanley and Pfizer, Johnson &
Johnson and Schering-Plough have agreed to publicly disclose and
explain the reasons for their corporate political contributions. The
firms' boards, in a move that goes beyond what...
more...
Apr 7, 2005NPR Report on Johnson & Johnson, Schering-Plough Political Disclosure Moves
April 7, 2005 National Public Radio
Peter Overby
National Public Radio covered the decision by pharmaceutical giants Johnson & Johnson and Schering-Plough to disclose and require board oversight of the political contributions they make with corporate
funds.
more...
Mar 6, 2005Investors turn focus to political contributions
March 6, 2005 Chicago Tribune
By Andrew Countryman
Amid the scores of shareholder resolutions filed each proxy season, a growing number of investors want to know where companies are spreading their political contributions.
more...
Feb 14, 2005BellSouth, Citigroup, Eli Lilly Urged to Disclose Donations
February 14, 2005 Bloomberg News Service
By Jonathan D. Salant
BellSouth Corp., Citigroup Inc. and Eli Lilly & Co. are among more than 30 companies that will be asked by institutional investors including unions to disclose their political donations and the reasons for them.
more...
Nov 1, 2004Strange Bedfellows
November 1, 2004 IR Magazine
By Jana Sanchez
Enron's collapse in 2001 turned media - and beleagured shareholders' - attention to corporate political donations. The energy giant's political generosity seemed to give its executives particularly former chairman Kenneth Lay,...
more
Sep 1, 2004Election Year Focuses Shareholders on Corporate Political Contributions
September 2004
By Shelley Alpern
Until very recently, the socially responsible investment (SRI) movement has devoted relatively little attention to the problem of corporate political giving. Having nothing to do with companies that donate unseemly sums to political causes may sound...
more...
Aug 16, 2004Business behavior is too opaque
August 16, 2004 Oregon Live.com
News items remind us of two types of corporate information that should be made prominently available to shareholders, employees and creditors.
more...
Apr 16, 2004U.P. political gifts are questioned
April 16, 2004 World-Herald
By Stacie Hamel
The Washington, D.C.-based center distributed information this week reporting that U.P. made $1,032,022 in corporate contributions in the 2002 election cycle and that the company "gave to conduits that, in turn, contributed to...
more...
Jun 24, 2010CPA Unveils Database on Corporate Political Disclosure and Accountability
June 24, 2010
Washington, DC -- The Center for Political
Accountability has launched a new corporate
political accountability and disclosure database to
provide a valuable tool for the media, investors and
the public and shed greater light on direct and
indirect corporate political...
more
May 20, 2010High Votes Show Strong Support for Political Disclosure
May 20, 2010
Washington - The Center for Political
Accountability applauds an exceptionally strong
show of support for corporate political disclosure
and accountability as Goldman Sachs shareholders
voted on a resolution for the investment bank to
report its trade association payments...
more
Apr 22, 2010Key Milestone Reached as Half of Trend Setting S&P 100 Adopt Political Disclosure
April 22, 2010
Washington -- Two new companies have moved to adopt
disclosure and oversight of their political spending with
corporate dollars. Their action brings to 50, or half, the number
of public companies in the trend-setting S&P 100 that have
embraced the corporate governance...
more
Dec 14, 2009New companies bring political disclosure to nearly half of trend-setting S&P 100
December 14, 2009
Washington DC - Four new companies have agreed to adopt disclosure and board oversight of political spending with corporate funds, the Center for Political Accountability (CPA) and Newground Social Investment announced today.
more
Jul 17, 2009Politico pulls back curtain on the secret funding of 501(c)(4) organizations
July 17, 2009
Washington, D.C. -- An article in today's Politico exposed an
effort by the American Conservative Union, a leading
501(c)(4) organization, to raise $2 million from private mail
carrier FedEx. The group said it would support the company
on a controversial piece of...
more
Apr 23, 200940 Percent Vote at Citi Demonstrates Strong Shareholder Support for Political Disclosure
April 23, 2009
Washington DC - The Center for Political Accountability hailed the 40 percent vote for a political disclosure resolution at Citigroup Inc.'s annual meeting this past Tuesday as demonstrating surging support for full reporting of the company's political spending.
more
Mar 24, 2009Political disclosure hits 60 companies, including 40 in the trend-setting S&P 100
March 24, 2009
Washington DC - As the 2009 proxy season formally opens, the pace of political disclosure is accelerating as seven new companies from a cross-section of American business have agreed to adopt or expand their disclosure of political spending with corporate funds. This brings to...
more...
Feb 23, 200919 Leading Financial Institutions Receiving TARP Funds Urged to Adopt Political Disclosure
February 23, 2009
Washington, D.C. – Warning that "gaps in transparency and accountability" contributed to the current economic crisis, shareholder advocates called on 19 financial companies that received more than $1 billion under the U.S. Treasury Department’s Troubled Asset Relief Program...
more...
Dec 11, 2008In About Face, Top Mutual Funds Support Political Disclosure Resolutions in 2008 Proxy Season
December 11, 2008
Washington, D.C. -- In a sign of accelerating support from the institutional investor community, at least 13 mutual fund families switched their votes in 2008 to support shareholder resolutions calling on companies to disclose and require board oversight of their political...
more
Sep 26, 2008Politico.com Article Highlights Secret Corporate Political Spending
September 26, 2008
Washington, D.C. -- An article in Politico.com this week is a timely reminder of the pervasiveness of secret corporate political spending that the Center for Political Accountability (CPA) has been working to eliminate through its political disclosure effort.
more
Jul 28, 2008CPA Calls on US Chamber of Commerce, new c4 Groups to Disclose Questionable Political Spending
July 28, 2008
Washington, D.C. -- The Center for Political Accountability (CPA) called on the Voter Education Committee (VEC), an organization used by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to conceal its funding of political ads in Washington state, to drop its appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court of a...
more
May 28, 2008Political Disclosure Tops 50 Companies
May 28, 2008
Washington DC - Reaching a major milestone, the number of companies that have adopted political disclosure and accountability reached 51, the Center for Political Accountability (CPA) and its shareholder advocate partners announced today. Prudential Financial (NYSE: PRU),...
more
Apr 21, 2008Key Proxy Advisor Recommends Vote Against AT&T Management on Political Contributions Disclosure
April 21, 2008
Washington, D.C. - The Center for Political Accountability (CPA) and Domini Social Investments welcomed the support of RiskMetrics Group (RMG) for Domini's shareholder proposal, which calls on AT&T to publicly disclose and require board oversight of its political contributions.
more
Apr 3, 2008Shareholders Call Information Giant McGraw-Hill Hypocritical for
April 3, 2008
Washington, D.C. - As McGraw-Hill shareholders prepare to vote on proxy proposals this April, a shareholder advocate called the information services company "hypocritical" for blocking a political disclosure proposal that has been adopted by 43 other leading U.S. public companies.
more
Apr 2, 2008Recent Developments Highlight Move Toward Secret Political Spending
April 2, 2008
Washington, D.C. - Two recent articles highlight continued efforts to hide political spending. One involves a suit by a conservative think tank to overturn West Virginia disclosure requirements for political spending in state races. The other examines the expanded use of...
more
Feb 19, 2008New Companies Bring Number Adopting Political Spending Disclosure to 38
February 19, 2008
Washington, D.C. - In a major expansion of company political
disclosure, Adobe Systems (NASDAQ: ADBE), United Parcel Service (NYSE: UPS) and United Technologies (NYSE: UTX) have agreed to report their trade association payments used for political purposes as part of their...
more
Jan 8, 2008CPA Calls on US Chamber of Commerce to Disclose its 2008 Political Spending
January 8, 2008
Washington, D.C. - The Center for Political Accountability (CPA) today urged the United States Chamber of Commerce, the nation's premier trade association, to disclose the sources and beneficiaries of the more than $60 million it plans to spend in the 2008 elections.
more
Dec 6, 2007Washington Post Highlights Growth, Danger of Stealth Political Spending Through 501c4s
December 6, 2007
Washington, D.C. -- As the Center for Political Accountability (CPA) has been warning, 501(c)(4)s and 501(c)(6)s -- non-profit "social welfare" organizations and trade associations -- are becoming the vehicle for stealth political campaigns. This development was highlighted...
more
Nov 15, 2007Fidelity Shift in 2007 Proxy Season Tips Scales Toward Corporate Political Disclosure
November 15, 2007
Washington, D.C. - In an important development, top funds in Fidelity, one of the nation's leading mutual fund families, moved from opposing to abstaining on shareholder resolutions calling for corporate political transparency and accountability in 2007, the Center for...
more
Sep 26, 2007Dell, Oracle Latest Companies to Adopt Political Disclosure
September 26, 2007
Washington, D.C. -- September 26, 2007. As 2008 proxy season plans get underway, shareholder activists announced today that Dell (NASDAQ: DELL) and Oracle (NASDAQ: ORCL) have adopted political disclosure and accountability policies. This brings to 33 the number of...
more
Sep 20, 2007CPA Announces New Board Member
September 20, 2007
Washington, D.C. -- Shelley Alpern, Vice President and Director of Social Research and Advocacy at Trillium Asset Management, and Michael Petro, Vice President and Director of Business and Government Policy and Chief of Staff of the Committee for Economic Development, have...
more
Apr 4, 2007Gaining Momentum: Number of Companies Adopting Political Disclosure Hits 31
April 4, 2007
Washington, D.C. - Shareholder activists announced today that 12 new
companies have adopted political disclosure and accountability policies, boosting the number to 31. This represents a 63% jump in the past two and a half months.
more
Mar 14, 2007CPA Releases Primer on Corporate Political Spending
March 14, 2007
Washington, D.C. -- The Center for Political Accountability (CPA)
released today a primer on corporate political spending. As the CPA's primer sets forth, corporate political spending takes various forms. The report provides a definition that covers the most common types of...
more
Feb 8, 200744 Companies to Face Political Disclosure Shareholder Resolution in 2007 Proxy Season
February 8, 2007
Washington, D.C. - Forty-four companies -- a record number -- are
expected to vote on political disclosure shareholder resolutions in the 2007 proxy season. Based on Center for Political Accountability (CPA) model proposals urging companies to disclose and require board...
more
Jan 24, 2007In Major Expansion, Four Leading Companies Widen Political Disclosure
January 24, 2007
Washington, D.C. -- In a major expansion of company political disclosure, General Electric (NYSE:GE), Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) and American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP) have agreed to report their trade association payments used for political purposes as part of their...
more
Dec 20, 2006Monsanto, Verizon, General Dynamics Adopt New Policies for Political Spending
December 20, 2006
Washington, D.C. - In a major development, three leading public companies -- Verizon (NYSE:VZ), Monsanto (NYSE:MON), and General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) -- have committed to steps that move corporate political disclosure forward.
more
Oct 10, 2006Eight Large Cap Mutual Funds Cast Proxies for Corporate Political Disclosure in 2006
October 10, 2006
Washington, D.C. - October 10, 2006. In a significant shift, eight of 30 "large cap" U.S. equity mutual funds voted for corporate political disclosure resolutions in the 2006 proxy season, the Center for Political
Accountability (CPA) reported today. Previously, the major...
more
Apr 6, 2006McDonald's, Southern Co. Latest Companies to Adopt Political Transparency and Accountability
April 6, 2006
Washington, D.C. - McDonald's (NYSE: MCD) and Southern Co. (NYSE:SO) agreed to disclose and have their directors oversee soft money political contributions made with corporate funds, shareholder activists announced today. The groups, Washington-based Center for Political...
more
Sep 29, 2005DeLay Indictment Exposes Company, Shareholder Risks from Secret Political Contributions
September 29, 2005
Washington, D.C. - The indictment of the No. 2 House leader for Texas campaign finance law violations underscores a much larger problem: undisclosed and unaccountable corporate political contributions invite corruption and threaten shareholder warned Bruce F. Freed,...
more
Jun 15, 2005Directors Mum on Use of Company Money in Judicial Wars, CPA Survey Finds
June 15, 2005
Washington, D.C. -- Directors are strikingly silent as a leading trade association threatens to entangle their companies in the divisive judicial wars, the Center for Political Accountability (CPA) found in a survey released today. Indeed, most of the directors queried didn't...
more
May 31, 2005Companies Dodge Social Security Reform But Still Fund Administration Push, CPA Survey Finds
May 31, 2005
Washington, D.C. -- A survey released today by the Center for Political Accountability (CPA) found that more large companies are reluctant, in the face of strong public opposition, to support the Bush administration's plans to overhaul Social Security. However, many of these...
more
Apr 11, 2005CPA Asks Companies to Disclose Participation in Social Security Reform Effort
April 11, 2005
Washington, D.C. - The Center for Political Accountability (CPA) asked America's largest companies to disclose whether they are spending corporate funds in the Social Security reform debate. The Center's mission is to bring transparency and accountability to corporate...
more
Feb 28, 2005Five New Companies Agree to Political Disclosure, Including Trade Associations and c4 Payments
February 28, 2005
Washington, D.C. -- Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN), Washington
Mutual (NYSE: WM), Xerox (NYSE: XRX), Capital One (NYSE: COF) and
American Express (NYSE: AXP) have agreed to report their payments to trade associations and other tax-exempt groups used for political purposes...
more
Feb 15, 2005Secret Corporate Political Gifts Harm Shareholders, CPA Study Warns
February 15, 2005
Washington, D.C. - The Center for Political Accountability (CPA)
released today a groundbreaking report that found that corporate secrecy on political contributions harms shareholders by denying them information critical for evaluating management performance and company...
more
Dec 15, 2004CPA Applauds Morgan Stanley for Agreeing to Disclose and Account for its Political Contributions
December 14, 2004
Washington, D.C. -- The Center for Political Accountability (CPA) today praised Johnson & Johnson and Schering-Plough for agreeing to disclose and have their board of directors oversee their soft money political contributions. The CPA is leading a nationwide campaign to...
more
Apr 20, 2004Letter to the Editor - Omaha World-Herald
April 20, 2004
In an Omaha World-Herald article published on April 16, a spokesperson for Union Pacific Corp. claimed that UP's employee-funded political action committee, not the company itself, contributed in the last election cycle to Americans for a Republican Majority (ARM), a...
more
Apr 12, 2004Union Pacific Shareholders Press Company to Disclose Political Contributions
April 12, 2004
Washington, DC - As part of a campaign to bring transparency and accountability to corporate political contributions, the Center for Political Accountability (CPA) is urging Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) shareholders to support a resolution that asks to disclose and...
more
Jul 7, 2010Show Him the Money
July 7, 2010 Washington Monthly
by James Verini
Thomas J. Donohue, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, has a well-developed talent for self-promotion. He makes a point of being the last person on any stage, and he leaves no detail to chance. The Chamber’s...
more
Jun 17, 2010Corporate cash ready to flow into Minnesota elections
June 17, 2010 Minneapolis Star Tribune
by Baird Helgeson and Pat Doyle
A new political organization, backed by two of the state's most powerful business interests and led by one of Gov. Tim Pawlenty's top deputies, could result in a powerful wave of corporate cash in this...
more
Jun 9, 2010Arizona Blocked from Subsidizing State Candidates Facing Privately-funded foes
June 9, 2010 Washington Post
by Robert Barnes
The Supreme Court stepped into another campaign finance controversy on Tuesday when it blocked Arizona from distributing campaign subsidies to publicly funded candidates facing big-spending opponents.
more
Jun 4, 2010Court Issues Injunction Against FEC in Speechnow case
June 4, 2010 Blog of Legal Times
by Marcia Coyle
The federal district court in Washington yesterday issued an injunction barring the Federal Election Commission from enforcing contribution limits against SpeechNow.org and its donors.
more
Jun 3, 2010Interest Groups Prepared to Spend Record Amounts in 2010 Elections
June 3, 2010 Washington Post
by Dan Eggen
Interest groups are gearing up to spend record amounts of money on this year's congressional and state elections, as liberals seek to shore up Democratic defenses and conservative and business groups plan a well-funded push on behalf...
more
Jun 1, 2010Another Year, More Secret Spending
June 1, 2010 National Journal
by Eliza Newlin Carney
Critics have found a lot to hate about the so-called Disclose Act, the new campaign
finance bill that congressional Democrats are pushing to enact by July 4.
more
May 14, 2010Norfolk Southern Investors Reject More Disclosure
May 15, 2010 Virginian Pilot
A majority of Norfolk Southern Corp. shareholders rejected a proposal Thursday that
pushed for greater disclosure of company spending on political campaigns.
At the railroad's annual meeting in Williamsburg, 67 percent of shareholder votes cast...
more
May 4, 2010GOP Governors Group Swings Into Action
May 4, 2010 Wall Street Journal
by Douglas A. Blackmon
EDGARTOWN, Mass.—A week ago, Massachusetts state treasurer Timothy Cahill, a conservative onetime Democrat now running for governor as an independent, thought he had just two serious opponents: Democratic incumbent Gov....
more
May 2, 2010Money Talks Loudly in California Election
May 2, 2010 Los Angeles Times
by Michael Hiltzik
Now that the "Money Talks" California election of 2010 is in full swing, it's timely to examine just how loudly the millions of dollars being spent by major corporations at the ballot box are speaking, and what they're saying.
more
Apr 27, 2010Riding Herd on Company Management
April 27, 2010 Wall Street Journal
by Roger Ferguson
In his speech last Thursday at New York City's Cooper Union, just a few blocks from Wall Street, President Obama called for reforms to provide shareholders a stronger say in the governance of companies in which they invest.
more
Apr 17, 2010Party Allies Raising Millions
April 17, 2010 National Journal
by Peter H. Stone
In the next month or so, the American Action Network, a self-styled "action tank," plans to launch a pricey political blitz with television and other ads in several states to boost the fortunes of Republican members who...
more
Apr 9, 2010Complaints from Jerry Brown prompt California Chamber of Commerce to pull ad
April 9, 2010 Los Angeles Times
by Anthony York and Michael Rothfeld
The California Chamber of Commerce on Thursday said it would stop airing an ad attacking Jerry Brown amid objections from members of the organization, some of whom received calls from Brown and his wife...
more
Apr 8, 2010Mining Interests are Heavily Invested on Capitol Hill
April 9, 2010 Washington Post
by Dan Eggen
The mining industry, which finds itself under renewed scrutiny this week after dozens of
fatalities at a West Virginia coal mine, wields major political clout in Washington thanks
to hefty campaign contributions to GOP lawmakers...
more
Apr 7, 2010Secert Funding of U.S. Chamber's Political Ads May be Outlawed
April 7, 2010 Bloomberg
by Jonathan D. Salent and Mark Drajem
April 7 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. companies would lose their ability to secretly finance
political advertising run by organizations such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce under
a bill being considered by Democratic...
more
Apr 5, 2010Big Money Flows to State Races
April 5, 2010 Wall Street Journal
by Brody Mullins
WASHINGTON—Labor unions, corporations and wealthy individuals are preparing to break spending records to influence the November elections. But more than in recent years, they will be focusing on races for governor and state...
more
Mar 31, 2010Fundraising for states' high-court races
March 31, 2010 USA Today
by Fredreka Schouten
Candidates for seats on state supreme courts or
equivalent judicial bodies raised more than $34
million for their elections in 2008. Twenty states
held high-court contests that year, and candidates'
fundraising topped $1...
more
Mar 28, 2010Pro-Business Lobbying Blitz Takes on Obama's Plan for Wall Street Overhaul
March 28, 2010 New York Times
by Eric Lichtblau and Edward Wyatt
WASHINGTON — With the Obama administration looking to score another major legislative victory, an
array of pro-business groups and fiscal conservatives are mounting a well-financed campaign to scale back
or...
more
Mar 27, 2010Rulings Split on Campaign Fundraising
March 27, 2010 Los Angeles Times
by David G. Savage
A three-judge panel rejects a GOP challenge to limits on direct
contributions to candidates or political parties. A D.C. appeals court rules
that independent groups may spend as much as they wish.
more
Mar 27, 2010Courts Ruling on Funding of Campaigns
March 27, 2010 Wall Street Journal
by Jess Bravin
Federal courts began reshaping campaign-finance law in light of a January Supreme Court
decision lifting some political-spending limits. The rulings Friday set the stage for future court
action that Republicans hope will...
more
Mar 25, 2010Political Non-Profits Ramp up Rhetoric
March 25, 2010 USA Today
by Fredreka Schouten
WASHINGTON — A little-known group, the
Committee for Truth in Politics, recently made a big
splash: It spent $5 million on television ads
denouncing Democratic efforts in Congress to
impose new regulations on the financial...
more
Mar 25, 2010States try to adapt to Supreme Court's campaign finance ruling
March 25, 2010 Washington Post
by Dan Eggen
Many states are scrambling to react to the Supreme Court's landmark ruling this year that
loosened restrictions on corporate and union spending in elections.
more
Mar 24, 2010The First Corporate Ad
March 24, 2010 The Texas Tribune
by Ross Ramsey
The first political ads bought by a corporation in Texas appeared in East Texas newspapers just weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court effectively ended the state's ban on that kind of spending.
more
Mar 9, 2010U.S. Chamber Grows into Major Poltiical Force
March 8, 2010 Los Angeles Times
by Tom Hamburger
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is building a large-scale grass-roots political operation
that has begun to rival those of the major political parties, funded by record-setting
amounts of money raised from corporations and...
more
Feb 27, 2010Decision Could Allow Anonymous Political Contributions by Businesses
February 27, 2010 New York Times
by Griff Palmer
The Supreme Court decision last month allowing corporations to spend unlimited money on behalf of
political candidates left a loophole that campaign finance lawyers say could allow companies to pay for
extensive political...
more
Feb 17, 2010Lobby Firm Tells Clients How to Sway Elections While Avoiding 'Public Scrutiny'
February 17, 2010 Talking Points Memo
by Zachary Roth
Last Month's Citizens U In the wake of last month’s Citizens United ruling, a powerhouse Washington
lobbying firm is informing its corporate clients on how they can use middlemen like the Chamber of
Commerce to pour...
more
Feb 10, 2010PG&E Amps up Bid for Power
February 10, 2010 Los Angeles Times
by Michael Hiltzik
The utility's initiative has become Proposition 16, which is written broadly
to apply to all public power systems. By undermining all competition from
public power agencies, it will benefit no one except...
more
Feb 1, 2010The Corporations Already Outspend the Parties
February 1, 2010 The Atlantic
by Marc Ambinder
For the first time in recent history, the lobbying, grassroots and advertising budget of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has surpassed the spending of the national committees of BOTH the Republican National Committee and Democratic...
more
Jan 23, 2010Campaign Finance ruling leaves Democrats with few options
January 23, 2010 Washington Post
by Dan Eggen and Ben Pershing
Frustrated Democrats began laying plans Friday to chip away at a landmark Supreme
Court decision unleashing corporate expenditures in political campaigns, but the ruling's
broad sweep will make it difficult to...
more
Jan 22, 2010High Court Decision May Bring 'Cascade' of Election Spending
January 22, 2010 Bloomberg
by Jonathan D. Salant and Lorraine Woellert
Jan. 22 (Bloomberg) -- A U.S. Supreme Court decision striking down federal restrictions on corporate political spending may pump millions of dollars into the 2010 campaign from companies with stakes in...
more
Jan 12, 2010Chamber of Commerce Warns Lawmakers it Will Play Election Hardball
January 12, 2010 CQ Today
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce said Tuesday that it will try to stop several bills that it views as trouble for
the economy, and the group warned lawmakers that it will involve itself in House and Senate races this year.
Thomas J. Donohue, president and...
more
Jan 12, 2010Health Insurers Funded Chamber Attack Ads
January 12, 2010 National Journal - Under the Influence
by Peter H. Stone
Just as dealings with the Obama administration and congressional Democrats soured last
summer, six of the nation's biggest health insurers began quietly pumping big money into
third-party television...
more
Jan 9, 2010Courts Roll Back Election Spending Limits
January 9, 2010 New York Times
by David D. Kirkpatrick
WASHINGTON- Even before a landmark Supreme Court ruling on
campaign finance law expected within days, a series of other court
decisions is reshaping the political battlefield by freeing corporations,
unions and other...
more
Jan 7, 2010How Interest Groups Behind Health Care Legislation are Financed is Often Unclear
January 7, 2010 Washington Post
by Dan Eggen
Many of the Washington interest groups that are seeking to shape final health-care
legislation in the coming weeks operate with opaque financing, often receiving hidden
support from insurers, drugmakers or unions.
more
Nov 24, 2009Tiny Group of Deep-Pocketed Contributors Fueling U.S. Chamber's Advocacy
November 24, 2009 New York Times-Greenwire
by Anne C. Mulkern
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce often says it speaks for 3 million members, businesses
both large and small. What it doesn't promote as readily is that 19 supporters last year
provided a third of the trade group's...
more
Nov 19, 2009Storm Over the Chamber
November 19, 2009 New York Times
by John Broder
BACK in the 1990s when Thomas J. Donohue was president of the American Trucking
Associations, a subordinate raised a question at a staff meeting.
Some of the association’s members, the aide said, wondered whether it was...
more
Nov 18, 2009Chamber spent $1.6 million in last week
November 18, 2009 Politico
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has spent at least $1.6 million in the last ten days targeting nine
House battleground Democrats who voted for the passage of the health reform package,
according to a list of ad buys obtained by POLITICO.
more
Nov 17, 2009Supreme Court Ruling Could Play Role in 2010 Governor's Races
November 17, 2009 USA Today
by Fredreka Schouten
If the Supreme Court opens the door to more corporate money in political campaigns, it
could affect laws in nearly two dozen states and a host of governor's races next year,
including high-profile contests in Texas and...
more
Nov 12, 2009Chamber's Donohue Keeps Cash Coming After PG&E, Apple Defect
November 12, 2009 Bloomberg
By Mark Drajem and Daniel Whitten
Nov. 12 (Bloomberg) -- Apple Inc. and three other members of the U.S.
Chamber of Commerce quit over its opposition to climate-change legislation.
President Barack Obama denounced the group for “spending...
more
Oct 22, 2009Drug Makers are Advocacy Group's Biggest Donors
October 22, 2009 New York Times
by Gardiner Harris
WASHINGTON A majority of the donations made to the National Alliance on Mental
Illness, one of the nation's most influential disease advocacy groups, have come from
drug makers in recent years, according to Congressional...
more
Oct 19, 2009Exit Through Lobby
October 19, 2009 The New Yorker
by James Surowiecki
Resigning in protest is not in the American grain. Robert McNamara stuck around as
Secretary of Defense even after he decided that the Vietnam War was a disaster; Colin
Powell did the same during the Bush Administration's...
more
Oct 18, 2009Chamber Divided on Climate Change
October 18, 2009 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
by Len Boselovic
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has lost a handful of influential members over
its opposition to climate change legislation being considered by Congress.
more
Oct 15, 2009Chamber Defections Cast Shadow Over Latest Effort
October 15. 2009 Roll Call
by Anna Palmer
As the U.S. Chamber of Commerce rolled out its multimillion-dollar Campaign for Free Enterprise
on Wednesday with all the pomp and circumstance of a political campaign rally, the business
group was still dogged by questions...
more
Oct 15, 2009Some companies cool to chambers' stance on climate change legislation
October 15, 2009 Finance and Commerce
by Bob Geiger
Minnesota businesses increasingly are saying that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which opposes a U.S. Senate energy bill that could cap greenhouse gas emissions, does not speak for them.
more
Oct 14, 2009Asset Managers, Religious Groups Turn up Heat on U.S. Chamber, NAM
October 14, 2009 E&E
by Michael Burnham
Forty-three asset managers and allied groups -- including the Sisters of the Blessed
Sacrament, Maryknoll Sisters and Dominican Sisters of Hope -- stepped up pressure
today on the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and National Association of...
more
Oct 14, 2009Businesses Clash with U.S. Chamber over Climate Change
October 14, 2009 Minnesota Public Radio
by Stephanie Hemphill
Businesses clash with U.S. chamber over climate change legislation
by Stephanie Hemphill, Minnesota Public Radio
October 14, 2009
St. Paul, Minn. — Some Minnesota businesses are opposing the U.S. Chamber of...
more
Oct 14, 2009Shareholders Urge Companies to Challenge U.S. Chamber, NAM Over Climate Change Position
October 14, 2009 North American Windpower
by NAW Staff
In letters to 14 top companies, 43 investors and investment-focused organizations
encouraged the companies to end the contradiction between their own policies and the
U.S. Chamber of Commerce's and National Association...
more
Oct 14, 2009Coalition Calls on 14 CEOs to Drop Chamber Memberships
October 14, Pension & Investments
The CEOs of Air Products & Chemicals, Alcoa, American Electric Power and 11 other
companies were urged to withdraw their memberships from the U.S. Chamber of
Commerce and the National Associations of Manufacturers over disagreements on...
more
Oct 13, 2009Campaign Finance Laws Face a Reset
October 13, 2009 Politico
by Jeanne Cummings
A series of court decisions expected this fall could put the nation on track to return to turn-of-the-century
campaign finance laws.
more
Oct 7, 2009Chamber CEO takes Steve Jobs to task in climate row
October 7, 2009 Greenwire
by Michael Burnham
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is defending its climate policy positions in a new and
very public way.
Chamber President and CEO Tom Donohue sent Apple CEO Steve Jobs a letter
yesterday that questions the computer maker's...
more
Oct 7, 2009Chamber Tries to Stop Climate Bleeding
October 7, 2009 CongressDaily
by Darren Goode
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Tuesday looked to stanch the bleeding of
recent defections over differences on climate change. They did so even as
several dozen businesses this week increased their visibility on Capitol Hill to...
more
Oct 7, 2009Does the U.S. Chamber Speak for Big Business?
October 7, 2009 Business Week
by Jane Sasseen
There aren't many who would willingly take on Apple (AAPL) icon Steve Jobs—and
lecture him on technology. But Thomas J. Donohue, the combative head of the U.S.
Chamber of Commerce, isn't one to step away from a fight.
more
Oct 6, 2009'Hot Button' Climate Issue Spotlights How U.S. Chamber Sets Policy
October 6, 2009 Greenwire
by Anne C. Mulkern
U.S. Chamber of Commerce staff decides the trade group's climate and energy policy positions without approval from the board of directors, Nike Inc. charged as it formulated a plan to call for greater chamber openness.
more
Oct 3, 2009Chamber of Overstated Horrors
October 3, 2009 Boston Globe
Globe Editorial
IT IS refreshing to see three energy companies - the nuclear power operator Exelon; Pacific Gas
and Electric; and New Mexico’s largest electricity provider, PNM - quitting the US Chamber of
Commerce over that organization’s...
more
Oct 2, 2009Investor Advocates Press Business Groups Over Climate Policy
October 2, 2009 New York Times
by Michael Burnham
Progressive investor funds and their allies are increasing pressure on
powerful Washington business associations to alter their climate change
policy positions, following the high-profile departure of three electric...
more
Sep 29, 2009Exelon Quits U.S. Chamber Over Rift on Climate Bill
September 29 Wall Street Journal
By Cassandra Sweet
Exelon Corp. on Monday became the third big utility in the past week to quit the U.S. Chamber of Commerce over the influential business group's stance against federal climate-change legislation.
more
Sep 29, 2009P&E, Duke Energy Walkout Show U.S. Splits on Climate
September 29, 2009 Bloomberg News
By Daniel Whitten
Sept. 29 (Bloomberg) -- PG&E Corp. quit the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Nike Inc. and Johnson & Johnson criticized the group for its stance. Duke Energy Corp. resigned from the National Association of Manufacturers.
more
Sep 27, 2009Armey's Army Marches against Obama
September 27, 2009 Washington Post
By Ben Pershing
Richard K. Armey has been an economics professor, House leader, corporate lobbyist and a blunt-talking critic of his fellow Republicans. Now, at the vanguard of a looselyknit band of opponents of President Obama's agenda,...
more
Sep 23, 2009Utility Quits Alliance Over Climate Change
September 23, 2009 New York Times
By Kate Galbraith
Amid a growing split in the business community over climate policy,
Pacific Gas and Electric, a major California utility, is withdrawing from
the United States Chamber of Commerce, citing “fundamental
differences” with...
more
Sep 19, 2009Court Backs Outside Groups Political Spending
September 19, 2009 New York Times
by David D. Kirkpatrick
WASHINGTON — The federal appeals court for the District of Columbia
ruled Friday that the government cannot restrict independent political
spending by nonprofit groups or political committees, accelerating the...
more
Sep 10, 2009Supreme Court hears arguments for corporate funding of candidates
September 10, 2009 Los Angeles Times
By David G. Savage
The Supreme Court's conservative bloc sounded poised Wednesday to strike down on free-speech grounds a 102-year-old ban against corporations spending large amounts of money to elect or defeat congressional and...
more
Aug 11, 2009A Century-Old Principle-Keep Corporate Money Out of Politics
August 11, 2009 New York Times
By Adam Cohen
The founders were wary of corporate influence on politics — and their
rhetoric sometimes got pretty heated. In an 1816 letter, Thomas
Jefferson declared his hope to “crush in its birth the aristocracy of our
moneyed...
more
Jul 17, 2009Exclusive: Conservative group offers to sell endorsement for $2M
July 17, 2009 Politico
By Mike Allen
The American Conservative Union asked FedEx for a check for $2 million to $3 million in return for the group's endorsement in a bitter legislative dispute, then flipped and sided with UPS after FedEx refused to pay.
more
Jun 30, 2009Justices may end campaign finance ban on corporations
June 30, 2009 Los Angeles Times
By David G. Savage
The high court delays a decision until next term on whether a documentary critical of Hillary Clinton can be regulated as a type of campaign ad.
more...
May 18, 2009Campaign Finance Rules May Take A Beating
May 18, 2009 National Journal
By Eliza Newlin Carnery
Even as Congress and the Obama administration mull a new round of campaign finance regulations, a series of legal challenges threatens to dismantle the existing rules, election law experts warn.
more
May 8, 2009Duke Energy ditches manufacturing group
May 8, 2009 Politico
By Lisa Lerer
Duke Energy won't renew its membership in the National Association of Manufacturers, in part because of disagreements with the lobbying group's stance on climate change policy.
more
May 5, 2009Chamber under fire on warming
May 5, 2009 Politico
By Lisa Lerer
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is taking head from Johnson & Johnson, Nike and other corporate members over its opposition to global warming legislation pending in the House.
more
Apr 21, 2009Lobbying Groups Ramp Up Spending on Issue Ads
April 20, 2009 The Wall Street Journal
By Christopher Conkey and Brody Mullins
Washington - A pilots group on Monday launched an advertising campaign designed to shoot down an Obama administration proposal to levy new user fees on planes, part of a surge in spending on issue...
more
Apr 12, 2009He Doesn't Let Money Managers Off the Hook
April 12, 2009 The New York Times
Gretchen Morgenson
Every once in a while, if only for sanity's sake, it is wise to leave our bankrupt era behind and seek out a bit of wisdom from a moral authority.
more
Apr 8, 2009Not Quite a Confession, But a Good Start
April 8, 2009 The Washington Post
Steven Pearlstein
For the past year, as the nation has engaged in a heated debate about how we got into the current financial mess and how we're going to get out of it, there's been one group noticeably missing from the conversation: leaders...
more
Mar 19, 2009FEC, IRS Decline to Pursue Complaints On Political Ads by Secretive Organization
March 19, 2009 BNA Money and Politics Report
By Kenneth P. Doyle
Americans for Job Security, a conservative, pro-business group has spent about $40 million since its founding a decade ago, nearly all of it for political advertising that favors Republican congressional...
more...
Mar 19, 2009Empty Disclosure
March 19, 2009 Center for Responsive Politics
By Lindsay Renick Mayer
Some lobbyists appear to collect money for nothing--more than half a billion dollars from clients over the last decade, Center finds.
more
Mar 8, 2009Nonprofits Wield Some Serious Campaign Cash
March 8, 2009 CQ Today Online News
By Bart Jansen
Fueled by anonymous, unlimited contributions, nonprofit organizations have emerged as the latest weapon of choice in political advertising, rivaling congressional campaign committees in the last election cycle.
more...
Feb 10, 2009Exclusive: Bailout recipients keep donating
February 19, 2009 The Washington Times
By Jennifer Haberkorn
Wall Street executives have pleaded economic ruin, secured hundreds of billions of dollars in taxpayer assistance and been pilloried for their business excesses. But none of that has curbed their appetite for...
more...
Jan 15, 2009FPPC targets ballot campaign accounts
January 15, 2009 The Sacramento Bee
By S Goldmacher
Assembly Speaker Karen Bass used hers to fund voter registration efforts to elect more Democrats. Former Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata used his to bolster his legal defense fund. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger used his...
more...
Jan 8, 2009Prop. 8 supporters file challenge to campaign donor laws
January 8, 2009 Sacramento Bee
By A Rojas
The Proposition 8 campaign has filed a federal suit challenging the constitutionality of California's campaign finance laws that compel disclosure of personal information by campaign donors who they said have been threatened and...
more...
Jan 6, 2009Wall Street: It's payback time
January 6, 2009 Fortune Magazine
By Roger Parloff
In today's dire financial climate, what exactly should a CEO say when it's time to hold that quarterly earnings call with analysts and the media?
On the one hand, he could try refreshing candor and say, "Look, let's be...
more
Nov 7, 2008The Crisis Last Time
November 7, 2008 The New York Times Book Review
By Richard Parker
For writers who seek to influence public affairs, timing plays a paramount role. And few writers have had better timing than Adolf Augustus Berle.
more...
Oct 10, 2008Independent groups up spending
October 10, 2008 USA TODAY
By Fredreka Schouten
Spending by independent political groups in congressional races is surging in the final weeks before Election Day, in some cases surpassing what candidates themselves are pumping into close contests.
Since Sept. 1, nine groups...
more...
Oct 9, 2008Business, Labor Groups Zero In On a Few Close Senate Contests
October 9, 2008 Wall Street Journal
By T.W. FARNAM
Business and labor groups are ramping up advertising in a handful of Senate races, seeing that chamber as the battleground that will have an outsize impact on the next administration's policies, regardless of which party...
more
Oct 9, 2008Partisan Fighting for Your Business
October 9, 2008 The Washington Post
By Mary Ann Akers And Paul Kane
Congressional Democrats and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce are back in that comfortable position they've long enjoyed -- mortal enemies.
After working together last week to pass the $700 billion rescue...
more...
Jul 26, 2008Business Nervously Eyes the Senate
July 26, 2008 National Journal
By Peter H. Stone
In the business community, the fundraising mantra these days sounds a lot like "It's the Senate, stupid." There are 23 Republican Senate seats up this year versus 12 Democratic ones, and fundraising by several GOP candidates...
more...
Jul 3, 2008McCain Allies Find Finance-Law Holes
July 3, 2008 Wall Street Journal
By Brody Mullins and T.W. Farnam
Allies of Sen. John McCain have found new loopholes in the campaign-finance law he helped write -- and they're using them to reel in huge contributions to help him compete with Sen. Barack Obama.
more
Jun 1, 2008When Political Giving Doesn't Pay
June 1, 2008 Directorship
Aaron Bernstein
As the 2008 presidential election hits full stride, your company may be inclined to shell outâ?? through the legal channels of PACs, 527s, and other avenuesâ??to the candidate perceived to be in the best interest of your company or...
more...
May 31, 2008McCain Campaign Calls; A Nonprofit Steps In
May 31, 2008 The Washington Post
By Robert O'Harrow Jr.
For weeks, Republican presidential candidate John McCain had been hammered for supporting the Air Force's February decision to award a $40 billion contract for refueling tankers to Northrop Grumman and its European...
more...
May 12, 2008Accounting Information as Political Currency
May 12, 2008 Harvard Business School
By Martha Lagace
Corporate donations to political campaigns reveal a lot about mutual back-scratching in the political and business arenas. Now new research from Harvard Business School reveals that corporate giving may consist of more...
more...
Apr 24, 2008Dragging Big Business to Disclosure
April 24, 2008 The New York Times
Resisting every inch of the way, the powerful National Association of
Manufacturers has finally agreed to follow Congress's new ethics law
and disclose which of its members have been funding its lobbying
operations on Capitol Hill. Welcome to...
more...
Apr 17, 2008Climate Issues Divide U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Big Members
April 17, 2008 Wall Street Journal
By Elizabeth Williamson
Thomas Donohue built the U.S. Chamber of Commerce into Washington's biggest spending lobbying group by seizing the opportunities of a pro-business, Republican decade. But as Washington tilts more Democratic, populist...
more
Apr 15, 2008The Selling of the Judiciary: Campaign Cash 'in the Courtroom'
April 15, 2008 The New York Times
By Dorothy Samuels
"We put cash in the courtrooms, and it's just wrong," Sandra Day
O'Connor, the former Supreme Court justice, declared at the start of a
conference in New York last week on a growing threat to judicial
independence and...
more...
Feb 5, 2008Interest-Group Campaign Spending Nears Record
February 5, 2008 Wall Street Journal
By T.W. Farnam and Brody Mullins
Spending by interest groups in the current presidential campaign is on pace to far exceed the record amount spent by outside groups in the last presidential election -- and could top $1 billion for the...
more
Feb 4, 2008Stealthy Groups Shake Up Races
February 4, 2008 Wall Street Journal
By Brody Mullins
Election results from Florida were still rolling in last Tuesday evening when Patrick Davis began plotting to help his candidate, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, in tomorrow's slate of Super Tuesday contests. He...
more
Jan 20, 2008A Conservative Answer to MoveOn
January 20, 2008 The Washington Post
By Paul Kane and Jonathan Weisman
When a group of former White House aides formed a political advocacy group called Freedom's Watch last summer, its initial wave of ads featured battered Iraq war veterans pleading for support for...
more
Jan 8, 2008Chamber of Commerce vows to punish anti-business candidates
January 8, 2008 Los Angeles Times
By Tom Hamburger
Alarmed at the increasingly populist tone of the 2008 political
campaign, the president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is set to issue a fiery promise to spend millions of dollars to defeat candidates deemed to be...
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Dec 29, 2007Donor money talks, often in a whisper
December 29, 2007 Los Angeles Times
By Nancy Vogel
A massage for a lawmaker's wife. Circus tickets for his kids. Keys to
a mountain cabin for the weekend. A donation to his favorite charity or one that flies him across the world on an "educational" trip. There are many...
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Dec 5, 2007Nonprofits Become A Force in Primaries
December 5, 2007 The Washington Post
By John Solomon and Matthew Mosk
Nonprofit groups created to educate the public and lobby on issues have started inserting themselves into the presidential primaries, adding an unexpected wild card to wide-open elections in both parties.
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Dec 4, 2007TrustHuckabee Calling
December 4, 2007 The Washington Post
Editorial
GO TO TrustHuckabee.com, and you'll see what appears to be a typical campaign Web site. "Governor Huckabee can win the Iowa Caucuses if you commit yourself to attending your Precinct Caucus and become a Precinct Captain," it...
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Nov 16, 2007Lifting the Curtain on Corporate Contributions
November 16, 2007 CondeNast Portfolio.com
by Megan Barnett
During the first six months of 2007, Pfizer spent $128,969 from its corporate checkbook on political donations to Democratic and Republican politicians. It doled out another $614,300 to various party committees and...
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Nov 16, 2007Corporate Political Contributions: Investment or Agency?
November 16, 2007 University of Minnesota Carlson School of Management
Abstract: We examine corporate contributions to political candidates for federal offices in the United States from 1991 to 2004. We find that firms that donate have operating characteristics consistent with...
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Nov 12, 2007A New Channel for Soft Money Starts Flowing
November 12, 2007 The New York Times
By Jim Rutenberg and David D. Kirkpatrick
The so-called Wounded Warriors Act, legislation intended to improve health care for veterans, has attracted nearly unanimous, bipartisan support in Congress. So why would the newly formed...
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Aug 12, 2007Resolved: Public Corporations Shall Take Us Seriously
August 12, 2007 New York Daily Magazine
By Dashka Slater
Daly's order, the Sisters of Saint Dominic of Caldwell, N.J., owns about 300 of the 5.5 billion Exxon Mobile shares outstanding, but she has used those few shares to keep the company talking about an issue that it...
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Jun 4, 2007Proxy bids more than hot air
June 4, 2007 Financial Week
By Jeff Nash
With the 2008 election season ramping up, investors are increasingly asking companies to better disclose their political contributions' and in many cases, they're getting what they asked for.
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Apr 11, 2007Industry Giants Opening Up on Politics
April 11, 2007 Roll Call
By Tory Newmyer
The transparency tide sweeping Capitol Hill is reaching corporate suites far outside the Beltway.
A dozen companies this month announced they are the latest to join a growing list of business giants pledging to disclose more...
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Apr 5, 2007More Firms to Make Political Disclosures
April 5, 2007 CFO.com
By Stephen Taub
The transparency tide sweeping Capitol Hill is reaching corporate suites far outside the Beltway.
A dozen companies have recently adopted political disclosure and accountability policies, according to a group of shareholder...
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Sep 22, 2006Subtle Shift: Business Lobby Hedges Its Bets By Supporting More Democrats
September 22, 2006 Wall Street Journal
By Jeanne Cummings
Freshman Democratic Rep. Melissa Bean of Illinois is facing the
Republican Party machine in her re-election bid. Vice President Dick Cheney and House Speaker Dennis Hastert have headlined money-raising events for her...
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Jun 1, 2006The End of Legal Bribery
June 2006 Washington Monthly
By Jeffrey Birnbaum
So far, the scandal surrounding disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff has produced some vivid and memorable examples of modern Washington graft--skybox tickets, pricey restaurant meals, golf junkets to Scotland. Yet at the center...
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Apr 27, 2005Loophole in 527s Shields Donors
April 27, 2005 Roll Call
Suzanne Nelson
As Congress debates what to do about 527 groups, the independent
political organizations that spent almost a half-billion dollars to
influence the 2004 elections, an underlying assumption has been that
while the groups raised...
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Jan 1, 2005Sunshine is the Best Disinfectant
January 1, 2005 Business Ethics
By Marc Gunther
A new standard for best practice in corporate political donations is being set today, as leading firms respond to pressures to disclose soft-money political donations. Morgan Stanley became the first major U.S. company to agree...
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Nov 15, 2004In the U.S., Some Big Names Have Lost Luster
November 15, 2004 Wall Street Journal
By Ronald Alsop
Ask Michael Kitchens what comes to mind when he hears the name Walt Disney Co., and it won't be Mickey Mouse or Disney World. What he thinks of first: "Michael Eisner and overblown salaries."
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Nov 14, 2004Bleeding Heart Businesses
November 14, 2004 The Washington Post
By Marc Gunther
Compassionate capitalism. Think it sounds like an oxymoron? Think again. Even as America is supposedly turning conservative on social issues, big business is moving in the other direction.
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Sep 5, 2004SEC Should Require Corporations to Disclose Political Contributions
September 5, 2004 San Jose Mercury News
Editorial
Maybe you contribute to political campaigns. Maybe you don't. Or maybe you do, but don't know about it. If you own stocks, directly or through mutual funds, some of your money is going into politics. As a shareholder,...
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Sep 1, 2004Domini Social Impact Update- Fourth Quarter 2004
September 1, 2004 Domini Social Investments
Social Impact Update
Every year, we draft and file "shareholder resolutions"to appear on corporate proxy statements in the spring. Each resolution presents an important social or environmental issue, and seeks approval from the...
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Apr 26, 2004Feds asked to suspend PAC probe: Contributions legal, U.S. attorney is told
April 26, 2004 Houston Chronicle
By R.G. Ratcliffe
A national conservative group is asking federal prosecutors to drop an
investigation into the financial activities of a political committee founded by U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Sugar Land. The American...
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Apr 16, 2004U.P. political gifts are questioned
April 16, 2004 World-Herald
By Stacie Hamel
The Washington, D.C.-based center distributed information this week reporting that U.P. made $1,032,022 in corporate contributions in the 2002 election cycle and that the company "gave to conduits that, in turn, contributed to...
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Mar 1, 2004Right Wing 527s in Temporary Hiatus
March 1, 2004 Roll Call
By Chris Cillizza
The Republican hard money advantage and temporary conservative and corporate donor skittishness have delayed the growth of conservative 527 political committees in the current election cycle, according to Roll Call, a newspaper that...
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