The following is an excerpt from Shut the Chamber’s new 28-page report, ‘Bagful of Cash: How the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Orchestrated a Corporate Takeover of Government.’ My goal when writing the report was to publish a one-stop-shop for everything relating to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s domination of all institutions of merit, from Congress to the courts, to the election cycles. This report also shows how the U.S. Chamber has invested millions of corporate dollars into opposing all legislation relating to healthcare, financial reform, closing corporate tax loopholes, and climate change. The report also highlights the U.S. Chamber’s support of austerity, fracking, the Keystone XL pipeline, and mostly Republican pro-corporate candidates running for Congress. You can read the full report at bit.ly/bagfulofcash.

Part III: The Corporate Takeover

People seem to listen to you more when you’ve got a bagful of cash.

– U.S. Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue, The New York Times

According to Donohue, the Chamber raises $5 million per week to keep its operations running. Most of this money, however, comes from billion-dollar corporations, not small businesses. The U.S. Chamber has spent $983 million on lobbying since 1998, and has already spent […]