In the aftermath of the violent siege on the U.S. Capitol, many large corporations are rethinking their political donations.
Several big banks - Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup - are temporarily pausing all donations while companies including Marriott International and the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association are stopping donations to any of the eight Senators and 139 Representatives who voted against certifying Electoral College results.
"For corporations this is just simply a bridge too far, it’s simply too much for them to be able to support elected officials who were viewed by a large sector of the public as being in some way responsible for what happened that day in Washington," said David Primo, a political science professor at the University of Rochester.
He expected more companies to follow.
"The fact that you have the Capitol building taken over, that changed the dynamics of the situation. And corporations don’t want to be in the position of being the odd man out among other competitors who are taking a different position."
Primo said these donations are often for small amounts of money. "It’s not about the money it’s about the symbolism."
But since corporations need to be on good terms with lawmakers, Primo expected those donations will pick up in the future.
"This is really just a symbolic move as a way for corporations to show their disapproval of what happened this week in Washington."
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