Here Are the Brands Severing Ties With Trump and His Allies

Following last week's harrowing insurrection at the U.S. Capitol—when supporters of President Donald Trump stormed the building on Jan. 6, convinced they could reverse the results of the 2020 presidential election that Trump lost—brands have been scrambling to separate themselves from the chaos and violence of that day. But as anyone familiar with political fundraising knows, it's not hard to connect the financial ties between some of the nation's biggest brands and the lawmakers who fomented a conspiracy theory that the election results were unsound. After all, those voting against certifying the results of the 2020 presidential race were clearly visible. One consequence of the baseless claims of election fraud manifested in the seditious activity of last week is this: Brands began to reassess how and why they're donating to certain politicians. Below is a running list of all the brands that are distancing themselves from Trump and his allies in Congress. It's worth noting that the scope of the financial boycott varies from representative to representative. Many have paused political contributions to Trump and the 147 Republican members of Congress (including eight senators) who opposed the certification of the Electoral College vote last week. Up until this year, that congressional action simply served as a ceremonial seal of approval following an election. Some, like Dow Chemical, have pledged to never support those lawmakers again. Still others, such as PGA of America, have canceled agreements with Trump's hotels and golf courses. Related Reading: Trump’s Name, Once a Brand, Is Now a Banner of Extremism The following list will be updated as more announcements are made: Airbnb “Airbnb strongly condemns last week’s attack on the U.S. Capitol and the efforts to undermine our democratic process," the company said in a Jan. 11 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." Amazon "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," the company told Popular Information late on Jan. 11. The newsletter also reported that Amazon's PAC has contributed over $600,000 to the 147 U.S. lawmakers who voted to overturn the election results. American Express "Last week’s attempts by some congressional members to subvert the presidential election results and disrupt the peaceful transition of power do not align with our American Express Blue Box values; therefore, the AXP PAC will not support them," the company said in a Jan. 11. statement. AmGen The company said it will review its PAC policies following certain Republican lawmakers' refusal to certify the presidential vote, per Popular Information. AT&T The telecom has suspended political contributions to the 147 lawmakers who objected to certify the presidential vote, according to The New York Times. Best Buy The retailer is suspending political contributions to the 147 U.S. lawmakers who voted against certifying the results of the presidential election, reported the Minneapolis Star Tribune. BlueCross BlueShield "In light of this week’s violent, shocking assault on the United States Capitol, and the votes of some members of Congress to subvert the results of November’s election by challenging Electoral College results, BCSBA will suspend contributions to those lawmakers who voted to undermine our democracy. These contributions are made through our PAC, which is supported solely by employee contributions," the company said in a Jan. 8 statement. "While a contrast of ideas, ideological differences and partisanship are all part of our politics, weakening our political system and eroding public confidence in it must never be. We will continue to support lawmakers and candidates in both political parties who will work with us to build a stronger, healthier nation.” Cisco Cisco said in a statement that its employee-sponsored PAC "will halt future contributions to any of the 147 representatives and senators who attempted to prevent Congress from fulfilling its constitutional duty to certify a legitimate and fair presidential election." Comcast "The peaceful transition of power is a foundation of America’s democracy. This year, that transition will take place among some of the most challenging conditions in modern history and against the backdrop of the appalling violence we witnessed at the U.S. Capitol last week. At this crucial time, our focus needs to be on working together for the good of the entire nation. Consistent with this view, we will suspend all of our political contributions to those elected officials who voted against certification of the electoral college votes, which will give us the opportunity to review our political giving policies and practices," the company said in a statement. CVS Health The company said it will review its PAC policies following certain Republican lawmakers' refusal to certify the presidential vote, per Popular Information. Delta The company said it will review its PAC policies following certain Republican lawmakers' refusal to certify the presidential vote, per Popular Information. Deutsche Bank Deutsche Bank will no longer do business with President Trump or his company in the future, according to The New York Times. Trump owes the bank more than $300 million, which is due in the next few years, per the Times' coverage. Dow Chemical The massive chemical company has pledged to never again contribute financially to members of Congress who opposed the Electoral College vote on Jan. 6, according to Popular Information. Edison International The California-based utility paused all political contributions on Jan. 7, and has indefinitely paused contributions to the 147 lawmakers who refused to certify the election result, according to Bloomberg News. ExxonMobil The company said it will review its PAC policies following certain Republican lawmakers' refusal to certify the presidential vote, per Popular Information. Facebook The social platform is freezing all political contributions to review its political spending practices, a spokesperson told Axios. FedEx The company said it will review its PAC policies following certain Republican lawmakers' refusal to certify the presidential vote, per Popular Information. General Electric A spokesperson for GE told The Wall Street Journal that the company's PAC would withhold political contributions from those lawmakers who refused to certify the presidential vote through the duration of the 117th Congress, which ends Jan. 3, 2023. Goldman Sachs The bank is freezing all donations through its PAC while it conducts an assessment of "how people acted during this period," a spokesperson told The New York Times' DealBook. Google Google has frozen all political contributions to "review and reassess" its policies, a spokesperson told Axios. Hallmark Hallmark, which contributed to Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley and Kansas Sen. Roger Marshall in the last election cycle, told Popular Information that it had requested a refund of its donations on the grounds that the senators' recent actions do not align with the company's values. Hilton "Hilton condemns the lawlessness, violence and attack on American democracy seen at the United States Capitol last Wednesday," the brand told Popular Information. "Due to the impact of the global pandemic, the Hilton Political Action Committee was suspended in March 2020 and remains suspended today. Historically the PAC has distributed donations equally across the two major political parties. As a direct result of recent events, Hilton will not be making political donations and will keep its PAC suspended indefinitely. We commit to any future donations being shared equally across the major parties and only after careful assessment of the recipient’s voting record.” Intel Intel told Popular Information that it "will not contribute to members of Congress who voted against certification of the Electoral College vote as we feel that action was counter to our company's values." JPMorgan Chase The bank has frozen all campaign contributions for six months, as reported by The New York Times. Marriot International "We have taken the destructive events at the Capitol to undermine a legitimate and fair election into consideration and will be pausing political giving from our Political Action Committee to those who voted against certification of the election," a spokesperson told Popular Information. Mastercard According to Popular Information, the company said in an internal statement on Jan. 11 that it would be halting political contributions to all members of Congress who "voted to object to the certification of the 2020 election." Microsoft The tech company told Popular Information on Jan. 11 that its "political action committee decided last Friday that it will not make any political donations until after it assesses the implications of last week’s events." Morgan Stanley The multinational investment bank said it would suspend all political contributions to the 147 lawmakers who voted against certifying the results of the presidential election, according to The New York Times. PGA of America On Sunday night, the PGA of America Board of Directors voted "to exercise the right to terminate the agreement to play the 2022 PGA Championship at Trump Bedminster," said the organization's president Jim Richerson in a video statement. Signature Bank Signature Bank is closing President Trump's two accounts, which total around $5.3 million, and is calling for the president's resignation from office, according to The New York Times. A spokesperson also told the Times that Signature Bank "will not do business in the future with any members of Congress who voted to disregard the Electoral College." Shopify Shopify permanently banned President Trump's official online stores on its platform, citing Trump's violations of its acceptable use policy. Stripe Stripe, a fin-tech platform that processes card payments for small businesses, will no longer process payments to President Trump's campaign website, reported The Wall Street Journal. Target "Target is fully transparent about our PAC contributions. Our TargetCitizens PAC is funded through voluntary contributions from our team members and contributes in a bipartisan manner to a wide range of federal candidates and organizations. We know that there isn’t a single candidate who aligns completely with Target or our team members on every issue, which is why we rely on established criteria like a candidate’s impact on our business, committee assignments, and more when we make contributions. Consistent with our current practice, we WILL continue to review our giving criteria and PAC contributions on an ongoing basis," the company told Popular Information. T-Mobile "The assault on the U.S. Capitol and on democracy was unacceptable. T-Mobile has supported many elected officials in a bipartisan approach to advancing a policy agenda that keeps the U.S. on the forefront of wireless technology. In light of recent events, we intend to reevaluate our PAC giving, and we look forward to working with the incoming administration," the brand told Popular Information. Walmart The company said it will review its PAC policies following certain Republican lawmakers' refusal to certify the presidential vote, per Popular Information.

Politics

Here Are All the Brands Severing Ties With Trump and His Allies

The list ranges from major U.S. banks to PGA of America and Hallmark

Kathryn Lundstrom

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Kathryn Lundstrom