WASHINGTON, D.C. – Ahead of the January 6th Committee’s first public hearing, watchdog Accountable.US released a new analysis finding Fortune 500 companies and corporate trade associations given over $1.4 million in April alone to the members of Congress that voted against certifying the 2020 election in the aftermath of the January 6th insurrection. Contributing companies include UPS, FedEx, Visa, Home Depot, GM, and Exxonmobil. Since the violent coup attempt, total donations from corporate interests now stand at over $16 million to the group that has been called the ‘Sedition Caucus’.

AT&T led the pack in April with a total of $95,000 given to election objectors while the telecommunications giant recently faced backlash from its own shareholders for “politically focused expenditures” that “appear to be misaligned with its public statements on Company values, views, and operational practices”. 

Accountable.US released an additional analysis outlining corporate donations since the January 6th insurrection to Members of Congress that have been subpoenaed for deposition testimony and/or were requested for interviews by the Select Committee. Corporate interests have given at least $826,653 since the insurrection to U.S. Reps. Kevin McCarthy, Scott Perry, Jim Jordan, Andy Biggs who were subpoenaed but refused to comply, as well as to Reps. Barry Loudermilk and Ronny Jackson who have yet to agree to Select Committee interview requests. 

Corporations like AT&T cannot honestly claim to support democracy at the same time they reward the very lawmakers who tried to finish what the insurrectionists started on January 6th. Companies that have failed to align their political spending with their stated values supporting democracy need to make it clear to the public that they value something more: amassing political influence over lawmakers, no matter what extreme views they hold.

A corporation that truly supports democracy is not a corporation that rewards election objectors like Kevin McCarthy who’d rather the public never get to the bottom of the violent coup attempt. Corporations that have given a free pass to those who recklessly keep the Big Lie alive to this day and sow distrust in our sacred institutions have apparently decided nothing comes before having political influence, not even a healthy democracy.”

Kyle Herrig, President of Accountable.US

Last August, Accountable.US launched its searchable tracker that allows the public to search Fortune 500 corporations and big corporate trade associations that have contributed to those in Congress that voted against certifying the 2020 election since January of 2021 — including corporations that made pledges to halt or pause donations to the lawmakers that perpetuated the Big Lie. In January, Accountable.US released a major report, ‘In Bad Company,’ highlighting the hypocrisy of numerous big-name corporations that have not followed through on their words of support for democracy.

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