Report Finds Some Businesses Donation Habits Don't Reflect Their Public Views

Friday, September 16th, 2022 -- 9:01 AM

(By Leah Treidler, Wisconsin Public Radio) In the aftermath of the Jan. 6 insurrection, major businesses across the country spoke out in support of democracy, but those statements don't always reflect where they donate.

According to Leah Treidler of Wisconsin Public Radio, that's according to an ongoing scorecard of Fortune 100 businesses released this week by the left-leaning watchdog group Accountable.US.

"Two-thirds of Fortune 100 companies are failing to do their part to protect democracy, or unfortunately even making matters worse by supporting those determined to undermine it," said Lindsey Melki, the group's director of corporate values and democracy.

The project lays out the corporations' public stances on protecting democracy and compares those to the companies' donations. The one Wisconsin company named in the report, Northwestern Mutual, received a failing grade. The company has spoken in support of American democracy, according to the report, but that support hasn't translated into action.

In the lead-up to the 2020 election, Northwestern Mutual published a statement saying that "while the peaceful transition of power is a cornerstone of American democracy, that doesn't necessarily mean the process is easy."

Soon after Jan. 6, the corporation said it planned to review its political spending policies each year. Despite that, the Milwaukee-based company contributed over $165,000 to members of Congress who opposed federal voting rights legislation, the report said, and donated more than $55,000 to members who voted against certifying the 2020 election.

Northwestern Mutual declined to comment. "It seems that corporations want to have their cake and eat it, too," Melki said. "On the one hand, they want to assure their customers, they want to assure shareholders (and) employees that they value their rights and their freedom to vote. But then quietly, they're funding those trying to rip away those same rights, because they think it will help their bottom line."

But that can jeopardize their brand, Melki said. In an NBC News poll last month, 21 percent of voters ranked threats to democracy as the number one issue facing the country, more than any other issue.

In a Data For Progress poll this summer, the majority of voters said they're less likely to purchase from corporations that donated to members of Congress who voted to overturn the 2020 presidential election results.

Melki said the Accountable.US scorecard lets voters see beyond companies' political statements by revealing the corporations' actions.

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