“Money is important, but it’s not everything,” said Bruce Freed, the president of the Center for Political Accountability. “Public angst, deep public concern, can offset the type of money advantage—or at least mitigate some of the money advantage—that you’re seeing today.”
“I think the reason why you have such spending is because the stakes are so high,” said Bruce Freed, president and a founder of the Center for Political Accountability.
The primer couldn’t be more timely as K Street and corporate America brace for possible post midterm congressional investigations. Business leaders and general counsels know that their companies’ political donations will be in the crosshairs.
…if Democrats take control of Congress, there could be hearings related to corporations’ political spending. And those hearings “could be quite searing,” said Bruce Freed
A new primer offers directors a framework for understanding and managing the risks tied to their company’s political activity.
“…as corporate political expenditures have grown in scale and complexity, so too have concerns regarding their ethical implications, transparency, legality, corruption, and potential for undue influence over democratic institutions.”
“The risk companies face from political spending has reached an all-time high,” said Bruce Freed, the president of the Center for Political Accountability. “It is hitting Code Red.”
“A $100,000 contribution that ends up impacting a handful of state races can flip a state legislature, can flip an AG’s office,” said Jeanne Hanna, CPA’s vice-president of research.
For a host of reasons, both legal and business, public corporations share Congress’ interest in stemming corruption.
A top business school and the Center for Political Accountability are out with a new guide cautioning business leaders that their political donations “are in the crosshairs.”