Businesses rethink political donations after Capitol siege
Associated PressBusinesses are rethinking political contributions in the wake of the deadly Capitol siege by President Donald Trump’s supporters on Wednesday. In a memo to employees Friday, Citi’s head of global government affairs Candi Wolff said “we want you to be assured that we will not support candidates who do not respect the rule of law.” “We support engaging with our political leaders even when we disagree, and our PAC is an important tool for that engagement,” Wolff wrote, adding that the company in 2019 donated $1,000 to the campaign of Sen. Josh Hawley, who represents a state in which Citi has a lot of employees. In all, Citi’s political action committee donated $742,000 to federal candidates in 2019-2020 according to OpenSecrets, a group that tracks political donations. The company said it believes in “respecting the integrity of the democratic process, the election outcome and the peaceful transition of power.” The trade group representing one of the nation’s best known health insurance brands, meanwhile, said it’s suspending political contributions to lawmakers who voted last week to reject the Electoral College results that cemented Democrat Joe Biden’s victory over President Donald Trump in the November election. In a statement, Kim Keck, the group’s CEO and president, says it will continue to support lawmakers and candidates in both political parties who “will work with us to build a stronger, healthier nation.” Hotel giant Marriott said Sunday it has taken “the destructive events at the Capitol to undermine a legitimate and fair election into consideration” and will be pause political donations to those who voted against certification of the election.
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