Corporate America's War on Political Transparency

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Published on Friday, April 29, 2011 by CommonDreams.org
Corporate America's War on Political Transparency

by Robert Weissman


Companies that bid for government contracts should disclose their campaign spending, in order to diminish the likelihood that contracts are a payoff for political expenditures.

The Obama administration has indicated that it plans to impose such a rule, through an executive order. Ideally, the rule would prohibit contractors and lobbyists from campaign spending, but a disclosure standard is a very positive if modest step.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the trade association for big business, however, takes a somewhat different view.

"We will fight it through all available means," Bruce Josten, the chief lobbyist for the Chamber, told the New York Times. "To quote what they say every day on Libya, all options are on the table." ...............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/04/29-1