The Reuters review found PepsiCo and DuPont's political action committees gave about half or more of the money from their top donations in support of senators and congressmen on a list of "climate deniers." (Photo: Health Gauge/flickr/cc)
Sep 06, 2016
U.S. companies are saying one thing on climate policy and funding quite another, according to a new Reuters investigation.
The news agency reviewed donations made during the 2016 election cycle by the political action committees (PACs) of 30 of the biggest publicly traded U.S. companies that signed President Barack Obama's "American Business Act on Climate Change Pledge" in 2015--and in doing so, signaled an "ongoing commitment to climate action."
But Reutersfound that 25 of those 30 companies--including DuPont, PepsiCo, AT&T, and Google--"are funding the campaigns of lawmakers featured on a 'climate deniers' list that was put together by Organizing For Action, a non-profit created by former Obama campaign aides to advocate his agenda."
Reuters reports:
The list includes more than 130 members of Congress, nearly all Republicans, and is a who's who of the biggest opponents of Obama's plan to combat climate change. Some of those on the list dispute the label "denier" and describe themselves as climate change "skeptics."
The list includes Republican Congressman Kevin Cramer of North Dakota, an energy advisor to presidential candidate Donald Trump who once argued the Earth was cooling not warming, and Republican U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma, who last year held up a snowball on the Senate floor as evidence global warming does not exist.
The review found PepsiCo and DuPont's political action committees gave about half or more of the money from their top donations in support of senators and congressmen on the list. That amounted to $56,500 from the Pepsi PAC's 29 donations of $2,500 and above, and $40,000 from the DuPont PAC's 19 donations of $2,000 and above.
This "disconnect between how these companies present themselves to the public on environmental issues, and how they manage their political contributions to support business-friendly policy" would likely not go over well with investors, one asset manager told Reuters.
"No company should want to be perceived as espousing progressive climate policies on the one hand," said Lauren Compere, managing director at sustainable investment manager Boston Common Asset Management, "while funding climate deniers on the other."
Research from the Center for American Progress Action Fund earlier this year found that more than six in 10 Americans are represented by a climate denier in Congress--thanks in part, it seems, to the country's biggest corporations.
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Deirdre Fulton
Deirdre Fulton is a former Common Dreams senior editor and staff writer. Previously she worked as an editor and writer for the Portland Phoenix and the Boston Phoenix, where she was honored by the New England Press Association and the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. A Boston University graduate, Deirdre is a co-founder of the Maine-based Lorem Ipsum Theater Collective and the PortFringe theater festival. She writes young adult fiction in her spare time.
U.S. companies are saying one thing on climate policy and funding quite another, according to a new Reuters investigation.
The news agency reviewed donations made during the 2016 election cycle by the political action committees (PACs) of 30 of the biggest publicly traded U.S. companies that signed President Barack Obama's "American Business Act on Climate Change Pledge" in 2015--and in doing so, signaled an "ongoing commitment to climate action."
But Reutersfound that 25 of those 30 companies--including DuPont, PepsiCo, AT&T, and Google--"are funding the campaigns of lawmakers featured on a 'climate deniers' list that was put together by Organizing For Action, a non-profit created by former Obama campaign aides to advocate his agenda."
Reuters reports:
The list includes more than 130 members of Congress, nearly all Republicans, and is a who's who of the biggest opponents of Obama's plan to combat climate change. Some of those on the list dispute the label "denier" and describe themselves as climate change "skeptics."
The list includes Republican Congressman Kevin Cramer of North Dakota, an energy advisor to presidential candidate Donald Trump who once argued the Earth was cooling not warming, and Republican U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma, who last year held up a snowball on the Senate floor as evidence global warming does not exist.
The review found PepsiCo and DuPont's political action committees gave about half or more of the money from their top donations in support of senators and congressmen on the list. That amounted to $56,500 from the Pepsi PAC's 29 donations of $2,500 and above, and $40,000 from the DuPont PAC's 19 donations of $2,000 and above.
This "disconnect between how these companies present themselves to the public on environmental issues, and how they manage their political contributions to support business-friendly policy" would likely not go over well with investors, one asset manager told Reuters.
"No company should want to be perceived as espousing progressive climate policies on the one hand," said Lauren Compere, managing director at sustainable investment manager Boston Common Asset Management, "while funding climate deniers on the other."
Research from the Center for American Progress Action Fund earlier this year found that more than six in 10 Americans are represented by a climate denier in Congress--thanks in part, it seems, to the country's biggest corporations.
Deirdre Fulton
Deirdre Fulton is a former Common Dreams senior editor and staff writer. Previously she worked as an editor and writer for the Portland Phoenix and the Boston Phoenix, where she was honored by the New England Press Association and the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. A Boston University graduate, Deirdre is a co-founder of the Maine-based Lorem Ipsum Theater Collective and the PortFringe theater festival. She writes young adult fiction in her spare time.
U.S. companies are saying one thing on climate policy and funding quite another, according to a new Reuters investigation.
The news agency reviewed donations made during the 2016 election cycle by the political action committees (PACs) of 30 of the biggest publicly traded U.S. companies that signed President Barack Obama's "American Business Act on Climate Change Pledge" in 2015--and in doing so, signaled an "ongoing commitment to climate action."
But Reutersfound that 25 of those 30 companies--including DuPont, PepsiCo, AT&T, and Google--"are funding the campaigns of lawmakers featured on a 'climate deniers' list that was put together by Organizing For Action, a non-profit created by former Obama campaign aides to advocate his agenda."
Reuters reports:
The list includes more than 130 members of Congress, nearly all Republicans, and is a who's who of the biggest opponents of Obama's plan to combat climate change. Some of those on the list dispute the label "denier" and describe themselves as climate change "skeptics."
The list includes Republican Congressman Kevin Cramer of North Dakota, an energy advisor to presidential candidate Donald Trump who once argued the Earth was cooling not warming, and Republican U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma, who last year held up a snowball on the Senate floor as evidence global warming does not exist.
The review found PepsiCo and DuPont's political action committees gave about half or more of the money from their top donations in support of senators and congressmen on the list. That amounted to $56,500 from the Pepsi PAC's 29 donations of $2,500 and above, and $40,000 from the DuPont PAC's 19 donations of $2,000 and above.
This "disconnect between how these companies present themselves to the public on environmental issues, and how they manage their political contributions to support business-friendly policy" would likely not go over well with investors, one asset manager told Reuters.
"No company should want to be perceived as espousing progressive climate policies on the one hand," said Lauren Compere, managing director at sustainable investment manager Boston Common Asset Management, "while funding climate deniers on the other."
Research from the Center for American Progress Action Fund earlier this year found that more than six in 10 Americans are represented by a climate denier in Congress--thanks in part, it seems, to the country's biggest corporations.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.