Chamber's War On Obama Just Getting Started

President Barack Obama's apparent hopes to the contrary, the head of the nation's flagship business lobby has made it clear that the corporate campaign against the White House's agenda is far from over.

In a newly-published BusinessWeek cover story worth reading for the gloating alone, Devin Leonard reports that U.S. Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue is gearing up for more fights, and is more than willing to inject unprecedented amounts of Chamber money directly into electoral politics.

Donohue's priorities, as reported by Leonard, are unsurprising: tax cuts, deficit cuts, foreign trade pacts, and deregulation -- meaning he wants to tear down the health care and financial reform laws passed earlier this year.

So while The New York Times suggested Thursday that corporate America may be softening its view of the Obama administration, Donohue finds that idea hilarious, according to BusinessWeek. "Oh, hell no," he chuckles to Leonard, when asked if the battles between Obama and his organization have ended. "They are in the second inning."

Comments

[foodchain11]

03:13 PM on 11/17/2010

So the US Chamber of Commerce, who has spoken against more than 1/2 of the voters (rural winner's vote tallies aren't even close to suburban and urban votes) is more important than NO NUKE TREATY BECAUSE OF GOP?

See, that's why we have so many dumb people. The US Chamber of Commerce is a Republican organization and this headline is about tea party and rich people winning in any way and at any cost. It's about GOP and insurance companies scamming the public into thinking we can't afford health care when "socialist" health care costs less than ours does now. It's about increasing deficit spending by dismantling HC and giving tax cuts to the rich. It's about tricking people and keeping them uninformed.

[bluepond]

07:37 AM on 11/08/2010

Wonder what ;they will use to distract us while this transfer of power takes place? Immigration, race wars, gender wars, gay rights, abortion, poor-bashing, xenophobia, teacher bashing, evolution, climate change? Or something new and even more divisive?

[Kai-HK]

10:27 PM on 11/07/2010

I see the CoC as the countervailing force to the huge amount of lobbying that unions and other liberal PACs have been doing over the last several decades that have enabled legislation that has crippled several municipal and state governments and has directed a lot of taxpayer funding to expanding government against the will of the taxpayer. The fact that the Democrats still managed to raise more money than the Republicans, according to OpenSecrets, Center for Responsive Politics, despite such widespread voter antipathy, shows just how skewed the pay-off is to Democratic candidates.

Unlike the public unions, that fund much of the Democrats, at least those that do not agree with the spending on Republicans that the CoC is doing can leave the organization if they want, as Apple and a few others did. Those in the public unions cannot. If they want a job in government, they have to pay their dues and have very little opportunity to affect how that money is spent. Their only option would be to quit. Unfair?

Also unfairly, I indirectly fund these public unions political action committee’s by paying the tax that pays the union wages that pays the dues that pays for the attack adds they buy. This is a misuse of my tax dollars and it is a more serious perversion of the democratic process since they are using my money to get people elected that they negotiate with to take more money from me in bloated labor contracts.

[artgurrl]

12:43 AM on 11/08/2010

This public worker pays her dues proudly. My tax dollars are misused everyday: on 2 wars, on welfare to the rich and subsidies to people who are billionaires who claim their estates are farms, on subsidized off shore accounts, on bailouts to Wall STreet and the banks, on roads that lead to your house and work, on the air traffic controllers who make sure YOUR plane takes off and lands safely, on YOUR and YOUR kids education (because you didn't learn a thing), and on YOUR postal service as delivered to your house every day.
Guess what? My tax dollars pay for my union dues too. It's called standing up for workers rights. I don't pay into Social Security, unfortunately, but my money goes toward my little pension when I retire. So instead of complaining about public workers rights, you should thank them for putting up with a part of the sourpuss public such as yourself who don't appreciate what we do.

[Kai-HK]

02:08 AM on 11/08/2010

artgurrl

a) Great. You proudly pay your dues, with the money that pay you, so your union can help to elect people that will take more money from me. Glad you are proud of that.

b) Great. You love your union so much that you endorse making everyone else that works with you, whether they want to or not, also support it.

c) Great. You are so into your rights as a worker, that you do not care what happens to other people who need jobs and would work for less but are prohibited from applying because unions will not let them have a chance.

d) Great. You claim that I have all these services that are being done for me at uncompetitive rates that are so unfair they are crippling municipalities and states throughout the US, but see no problem with these organizations wasting money on politics rather than trying to make their industries more efficient and competitive and accountable to the public that pays their salaries.

e) Agree with you on all those other wasteful government sponsored pork. That still does not excuse the unions for using my money to work against my best interests as a tax payer. Right?

f) Why shoudl we appreciate you? Our education is an epic fail. As is our postal service.

Kai

[G52]

03:39 AM on 11/08/2010

Kai-HK, Employees [workers] of private unions do not have much say in collective bargaining and contract negotiations. Sometimes a union member will be invited to discuss "local issues" but nearly ALL negotiating is done by the PAC's [Political Action Committees]

Also, how is it fair for the average middle class worker to fund [through tax breaks for multinationals to outsource overseas] the exporting of American jobs? Why does the COC not use simple disclosure as the Democratic Party does? [527s etc.] Those funds ARE disclosed because they are from American workers overseas. The Chamber keeps its sources in the dark! The COC is also being investigated for tax evasion, why should Americans trust them at all?

Finally, I have to disagree with your "bloated labor contract" statement! The Swiss and Germans are doing quite well thank you, with their unions and "living wages" agreements.

A living wage IS NOT a bloated labor contract! Where is the outrage over the 800 pound gorilla in the room? [wall street]

[Kai-HK]

08:08 PM on 11/08/2010

Collective bargaining is when a group of people coordinate their wage and benefit demands. That is what unions do whether it is with one leader going in and doing the negotiation or all of them sitting outside the fence of the company. For any other factor of production, price collusion is illegal. It should be with labor also.

I assume you are referring to the fact that companies do not get taxed on retained earning that are plowed back into their businesses in foreign countries. That is really not a tax break since they have already paid taxes in the country they are based. If you want them to repatriate the earnings, simply lower our corporate tax rate, currently the highest nominal rate in the developed world after Japan just lowered theirs.

The Germans have a failed economy and have been working for much of the decade to correct that. That is right, what we take as a painful anomaly, they have been living with for 30 years. It is low at the moment because of the stimulus program that provides government-sponsored programs that supports part-time labor in factories but once that gets pulled they will be back up to double-digit unemployment. If Germany is so great, we should do what they do. Their postal service uses a higher percentage of part-time employees than ours does.

A bloated labor contract to me is when private employees on average get paid less than government workers.

Kai

[Kai-HK]

07:44 AM on 11/14/2010

G52:

You have accused me of frothing at the mouth and making pointless accusations. All I wanted you to do, was provide me to the links to PAC's that go around negotiating with Union on behalf of Unions. If that is too hard for you, just give me the name of the PAC that you claimed negotiated your contract. I have asked repeatedly for you top back up your statement and you have repeatedly failed to do so.

Kai

[stargazer13]

08:51 AM on 11/07/2010

these men in the chamber !! are not friends of the American people !! that is very clear !!

[sandracoston]

11:59 AM on 11/08/2010

Local chambers should be outraged by this blatant attack on the true small businesses in this country. It is time for people to stand up to the greedy corporations by removing themselves from and local chamber that support this strategy.

[ScottnLaguna]

01:11 AM on 11/07/2010

Capitalism vs socialism. Sure hope capitalism wins.

[JPHR]

06:44 AM on 11/07/2010

Capitalist versus democracy. Doubt whether democracy will survive.

[ScottnLaguna]

10:50 AM on 11/07/2010

We don't don't have a democracy in this country. It is a representative republic. No wonder you're upset.

[stargazer13]

08:53 AM on 11/07/2010

capitalism has failed !! hope the republic can survive !!

[bluepond]

11:44 PM on 11/06/2010

Funny thing is, I suspect even the c of c (and some of the other biggies listed by givesflack below) actually are being played themselves. There's a whole lotta deception goin on.

[Hopefor08]

11:02 PM on 11/06/2010

These republican multi-billionaires are racists, haters, greedy, evil and satanic. They want power, no laws and no regulations in their way. America needs to be saved from their greed and corruption. They are schemers against democracy and against our government. I hate these vermin and their evil corruption.

[sandracoston]

12:07 PM on 11/08/2010

They keep misleading the American people, and they get away with it because lets face it the media in this country are corporate owned and benefit from the tax cuts for the wealthiest. Democracy what is that?

[phread]

07:04 PM on 11/06/2010

just one more fascist element looking for more government money for corporate america

[stape45]

02:43 PM on 11/06/2010

I believe it was Bush who said "You are either for America, or you're against it." The only profound thing he ever said was incidental.

[Heschel]

11:48 AM on 11/06/2010

Before ,this or any other person for that matter, makes a declaration of WAR against President Obama they had better take note of the war already at work within their own members.

[farmilyman]

08:01 AM on 11/06/2010

Who elected the Chamber of Job Outsourcing to run the country?

[serbsaint]

12:19 AM on 11/06/2010

So, outsourcing is the name of the game. Think of how many jobs are lost to outsourcing and then think of how many jobs are lost as a result. What do you think, two or three additional jobs? The jobs that outsourcing creates is irrelevant, since it does not create jobs. Well, not here anyway. The idea that outsourcing benefits us is absurd. Why do the teabaggers support this? Knowing that the GOP is in favor of this, how did they win on tuesday? Why does anyone let this government stand for supporting this? Where is the outrage over this? This is, I would hazard to guess, a big reason for our unemployment situation. Bring those jobs back!

[givesflack]

11:42 PM on 11/05/2010

Enemy's of
America:
C of C
Heritage Foundation
Bush Family
Koch
Murdoch
Wall Street.

[givesflack]

11:44 PM on 11/05/2010

especially the
GOP
GOP
GOP...............................

[phread]

07:01 PM on 11/06/2010

rogues gallery of american fascists.

[givesflack]

11:36 PM on 11/05/2010

Hey Tom Donohue, I'll take your second inning comment and raise a second amendment salute to your cranium, After the revolution they can mourn you like Glenn mourns MLK.

[givesflack]

11:36 PM on 11/05/2010

Never

[Bluebloodsbastardson]

11:09 PM on 11/05/2010

This is getting interesting....connect some dots here with me......the C of C is getting enormous Chinese "donations".. the US debt has a LOT of foreclosed commercial, industrial and residential properties.....Chinese banks are buying up large amounts of US debt....foreclosed commercial, properties properties industrial and residential....to sell to the Chinese middle class "investors" who because no one here can buy the properties ...........will be forced to emigrate to the US and occupy them ....think they'll call themselves a corporation so they have "personhood"?