Trump’s inaugural fund generated a record $170 million in donations. Why do companies win?

Outside the White House, just days before President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration day, preparations were underway for a gala that would be funded by a record number of corporate donations — including from many first-time donors from the worlds of technology, artificial intelligence and crypto.

“I can see it both ways,” said Jr. Lopez, a tourist from Dalton, Georgia, who was visiting the nation’s capital before Inauguration Day. Lopez said the gala — an American tradition that celebrates the next president, with politicians from both parties in attendance — is supposed to be a day for the people.

However, he said, “If you have too much corporate influence in politics, that could cause problems. That could ignore the interest of the people (in favor of) big corporations.”

Trump’s second fund has raised $170 million so far, breaking the record set in 2017 and surpassing the total donations raised by the presidential inaugural committees of Biden and Obama, which the incoming administration appointed to organize Inauguration Day festivities.

The donations, while symbolic, show that some companies are vying for a friendly relationship with the president-elect, hoping he will make good on his promises of deregulation and claims he will fire officials who run oversight agencies like the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. And the Federal Trade Commission.

Others may be offering the money as a sort of slur to Trump, who has publicly disparaged companies for what he perceives to be the case Insults against himincluding Meta’s Facebook company – Trump once referred to the company as an “enemy of the people” to prevent him from using its platform in the wake of the January 6 riots.

But CEO Mark Zuckerberg recently praised the president-elect and acknowledged that the company is making changes, e.g Stay away from fact checkingTo suit the current political climate. He’s attending the inauguration alongside other tech executives like Apple’s Tim Cook and OpenAI’s Sam Altman.

“Donations to the inaugural fund are primarily intended to gain support and reach,” said Bruce Freed, president and co-founder of the Center for Political Accountability, a nongovernmental organization that advocates for transparency in corporate political spending.

“They realize that the relationship with Trump will be transactional,” Fareed added. He added: “Even Trump made it clear that he will do whatever he wants, but he expects everyone to rush.”

Republican lobbyist Ozzie Palomo, co-founder and managing director of the Chartwell Strategy Group in Washington, D.C., said there was more uncertainty in 2017 when Trump first took office. “People were very conservative about taking sides socially and publicly. That stigma has disappeared,” he said.

“Inauguration weekend is by no means an opportunity to iron out all your political concerns, but it allows you to put on a face and start building those relationships with key stakeholders who will be in positions of power over the next four years.”

What companies donated and how much?

CBC News reached out to 20 companies, many of which confirmed they had donated to Trump’s inaugural fund.

Boeing contributed $1 million to Trump’s inaugural fund this year, after donating the same amount to Biden’s inaugural fund in 2021 and Trump’s first inaugural fund in 2017. A spokesman for the aerospace giant said the company is “pleased to continue Boeing’s bipartisan tradition of supporting the United States.” “. Presidential Inaugural Committees.”

Google, Microsoft, and Meta each donated $1 million to the fund. An Uber spokesperson said that the ride-hailing company donated $1 million to the fund (the same as its contribution to Biden’s 2021 party) and that its CEO, Dara Khosrowshahi, donated an additional $1 million this year.

An OpenAI spokesperson said Altman, its CEO, made a personal donation of $1 million to the inaugural fund.

Spokesmen for oil giant Chevron, investment firm Goldman Sachs and automaker Toyota confirmed the donations but did not confirm the amount. A spokesperson for cryptocurrency company Ripple said it donated $5 million of its own cryptocurrency, called XRP, to the inauguration.

Amazon, Apple, Adobe, Pfizer, Hyundai and Delta Airlines did not respond to a request for comment. Aside from Pfizer, which donated an unspecified amount, all reportedly donated $1 million to Trump’s inaugural fund.

Biden’s inaugural fund in 2021 raised $62 million, but in-person celebrations were scaled back due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Obama raised a then-record $53 million for his inaugural fund in 2009, even with a cap on donations, which was removed from his inaugural fund in 2013, which brought in $43 million.

“They don’t want to be on the president’s bad side.”

The inauguration is largely viewed as a nonpartisan political event. But it can also be an opportunity for companies to show their support for an incoming president or administration, explained Brendan Glavin, director of insights at OpenSecrets, a US non-profit that tracks money in politics.

“They don’t want to be on the president’s bad side,” Glavin said. “If he’s upset with someone or upset about a company doing something he doesn’t like, he doesn’t have any qualms about just coming right out and berating them publicly.

“I think this plays a bigger role this time compared to the past with different presidents,” he said. “I think past experience dictates some action on this.”

While the inaugural fund may receive a small sum from Congress to cover any municipal services related to the event, the funds are mostly funded through donations from individuals and corporations.

Glavin explained that companies are not allowed to donate directly to presidential campaigns — they can donate indirectly to political action committees or other groups that support a particular candidate — but they mostly stay out of politics so as not to alienate their consumer base.

While the ban on foreign donations remains in place, the opening funds Don’t judge The same restrictions as electoral campaigns. Some companies make self-disclosures. Otherwise, the President’s Inauguration Committee He has 90 days To reveal the full list of donors to the Federal Election Commission.

“If you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu.”

Several industries stand out on the list of companies donating to Trump’s inaugural fund.

For the first time, several cryptocurrency companies including Ripple, Robinhood, and Coinbase have joined It is said to be The donation to the fund, reflecting a desire to make inroads with management that has enthusiastically embraced the industry and even appointed a “crypto czar.”

“They see this as an opportunity to put in place a more formal organizational structure to legitimize operations in their world. This is kind of their political party,” Palomo said.

He added that American companies are “reading the tea leaves.” “It’s not necessarily about Donald Trump per se, but it’s about Donald Trump’s voters…. From a business perspective, they need his voters to buy into what they’re selling.

“There’s a saying here that if you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu. And I think people are trying to figure out how to be around that table where the decisions are being made.”