According to a report from NBC, eight major corporations that made a public show of signing onto a letter urging lawmakers to pass the voting rights bill named after the late Rep. John Lewis (D) are still donating to a multitude of Republican lawmakers who have been blocking passage of the bill.
As NBC's Jane Timm wrote, the watchdog group Accountable.US singled out the big companies who signed the July letter -- signed by 230 corporations -- that read, in part: "We need federal protections to safeguard this fundamental right for all Americans. Last Congress, the House of Representatives passed the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. We support the ongoing work of both the House and the Senate to enact legislation amending the Voting Rights Act this Congress."
That, however, didn't stop them from doling out $164,500 to Republican senators who voted this past week to shelve debate on the bill -- keeping it from coming to a vote.
As Timm wrote, "The companies include household names like Amazon, Dell and Facebook."
"Dell Technologies, whose founder Michael Dell has spoken out against proposed voting restrictions, has donated $38,500 to Senate Republicans since January, while Amazon has donated $22,500, according to Accountable.US," she continued. "Microsoft Corp., which lobbied against restrictive state laws throughout the spring, regularly made donations to political action committees affiliated with Senate Republicans through the end of June, the watchdog said in its analysis."
Not to be left out, she notes that Facebook donated "$26,500 to Senate Republican reelection campaigns."
The report states that representatives for the companies did not return requests for comment.
