WASHINGTON (AP) – Republicans are worried that a business backlash agitated by the Capitol’s deadly insurgency could spread a vital cash flow from the campaign, complicating the party’s prospects of regaining the Senate in the next election.
The Republican Party is already facing a difficult Senate map in 2022, when 14 seats of democracy and 20 Republicans will participate. This includes at least two open seats that Republicans will defend due to the retirements of Republican Sen. Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania and Richard Burr of North Carolina.
But some in the party say the problem may be bigger than the map. Eight Republican senators voted to reject the Electoral College votes for President-elect Joe Biden, even after the looting of the Capitol by a crowd of Donald Trump supporters who were urged by the president to prevent the Congress certified Biden’s victory. Five people were killed in the chaos, including a Capitol police officer.
The accusations were swift, with more than a dozen corporate giants (including AT&T, Nike, Comcast, Dow, Marriott, Walmart and Verizon) pledging to withhold donations to Republican lawmakers who voted to reject the result. elections in Arizona or Pennsylvania. One such lawmaker, Florida Senator Rick Scott, is the new chairman of the Republican National Senate Committee, a position that makes him the public face of Senate Republican fundraising efforts.
“That’s the core of the problem: is this a storm that’s going to explode, or is it … a certain challenge (Biden’s) Electoral College to certify a scarlet ‘A’?” said Republican donor Dan Eberhart, who has contributed at least $ 115,000 to Senate Republican efforts in recent years.
Lost contributions are not disastrous in themselves. Political action committees controlled by corporations and industry groups are limited to giving $ 5,000 to a candidate a year, some of the typical fundraising for most Senate candidates.
But two major Republican strategists involved in Senate races say the cumulative effect of corporate decisions could have a greater impact.
Both strategists, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal party deliberations, say companies that suspended political donation also send a powerful signal to their executives, board members and employees about who they should be. to give. And with Scott at the helm of the NRSC, that could affect the committee’s cash flow, they said.
In addition to concerns, other pillars of GOP fundraising, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Rifle Association, and groups linked to the Koch brothers, can no longer be relied upon for strong financial support.
The ANR announced on Friday that it had filed for bankruptcy after years of exorbitant spending and privileged treatment by top leaders. The Chamber of Commerce, which angered some Republicans when it recently began giving Democrats, announced this week that it will withhold contributions from some Republicans for its actions. And the Koch network, too, announced it will examine who gives after the insurgency, the Wall Street Journal first reported.
“There are some members who by their actions will have lost the support of the United States Chamber of Commerce,” said this week Neil Bradley, head of chamber policy. “Our CAP will continue to support candidates who demonstrate this kind of commitment to governmental and democratic norms and our priorities.”
Even more troubling, one of the most influential Republican megadonors, Sheldon Adelson, died in recent days.. This puts more pressure on the NRSC and the Senate’s main Republican external group, the Senate Leadership Fund, to cover the difference.
Even before last week’s violence, Republican Ted Cruz of Texas and Josh Hawley of Missouri sparked widespread anger to lead efforts to challenge Biden’s victory. Since the assault on the Capitol, both have been subjected to even harsher criticism by editorial boards and influential donors, including calls for resignation. Both are considered likely candidates for the White House in 2024.
Then there’s Scott, a wealthy businessman and former Florida governor. He also voted to oppose Biden’s victory.
“Daily Reminder, Senate Republicans have chosen one of the few senators who supported the big lie AFTER death and destruction at the Capitol to be its political leader,” former Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill tweeted , a Democrat who was ousted by Hawley. “Rick Scott is in charge of the organization trying to pick R’s.”
Scott’s new position as president of NRSC is widely seen as a prelude to a possible 2024 career and will lead him into close contact with a national network of the Republican Party’s largest donors.
On Wednesday, Scott released a video message after taking over the NRSC, which weighed in on his biography and considered his plan to help Republicans win. This irritated some Republicans, who believe Scott took over the NRSC to help build a national network of donors for an expected presidential candidacy, according to three Republican strategists.
“I have won four statewide elections. All the races were close. In the process, I raised a lot of money and spent a fortune of my own, “Scott said in the video.” I can say this with confidence: I will never ask a potential donor to contribute more than I have already given. “
In a statement, Chris Hartline, a spokesman for the NRSC and assistant to the senator, said Scott was the party’s “best fundraiser” and that the committee “had no interest in getting involved with nonsense from DC consultants who they have no idea what they are talking about. ” ”
“Senator Scott has made it clear that if people want higher taxes, more regulation, greater government and nationalized health care, they should feel free to give to Democrats,” Hartline said.
Some say it’s too early to know if the corporate reaction will really hurt Republicans. They point out that with the elections just held, this is a period when there is usually little fundraising activity. And there are those who are confident that when Washington is under unified democratic control, business groups will once again find a common cause with Republicans.
“Many of these talks are premature and short-sighted,” said Scott Reed, a longtime Republican strategist. “A multitude of regulations take over Congress and the White House. This is a decision that many will regret in the middle of summer.”
The eight Republican senators who voted to defend objections to the Electoral College count were Cruz, Hawley, Scott, Cindy Hyde Smith of Mississippi, John Kennedy of Louisiana, Roger Marshall of Kansas, Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, and Cynthia. Lummis of Wyoming.
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Associated Press writer Alan Fram contributed to this report.