Google's Ties To Denialist Politicians Go Back Years, Push $700K In PAC, Other Donations
Google executive chairman Eric Schmidt has given $29,000 over the past six years to politicians who could be lumped in with the “liars” on climate change that he denounced this week. Schmidt’s donations to eight Republican legislators since 2008 have become part of Google’s complicated relationship with the American Legislative Exchange Council, the powerful conservative policy organization colloquially known as ALEC.
Earlier this week, Schmidt sent ripples through Silicon Valley when told a syndicated radio show host that Google would end its membership with ALEC, saying it was among groups who were “literally lying” about climate change. Within days, word came that Facebook, Yahoo and Yelp announced that they had either ended or were planning to end their connection to the influential organization, whose 200 member companies have 33 million employees. None of those tech companies would publicly or pointedly attribute to their departures to differences over global warming.
But severing ties with ALEC wasn’t just a moral issue for Google. It was a business decision. The Internet search giant has become one of America’s biggest funders of large renewable power projects, so far investing more than $1.5 billion in solar and wind projects. And ALEC — which is funded by Exxon, Chevron and the oil-rich Koch brothers — has been trying to roll back renewable power laws in state after state.
Google’s willingness to tolerate that contradiction demonstrates just how badly the company wants to make inroads with conservatives, said Tyson Slocum, director of the energy program at the Public Citizen watchdog group. “That just tells you that Google’s number one priority is getting access to powerful individuals,” Slocum said. “Google likes to present itself as this company that goes about things in a totally different way. And that’s not the case. They’re playing the same influence games as everyone else does.”
EDIT
http://www.sfgate.com/politics/article/Despite-recent-split-from-conservative-group-5781594.php
