DNC to repeal ban on fossil fuel company donations
Two months ago, the Democratic National Committee passed a specific ban on candidates accepting donations from fossil fuel companies.
"Fossil fuel corporations are drowning our democracy in a tidal wave of dark oily money; they have deceived the public about the impacts of climate change, fought the growth of clean renewable energy, and corrupted our political system," the resolution read. That noise you hear is the sound of global warming hysteric's heads exploding.
I guess that dark, oily money was just too hard to resist.
Washington Free Beacon:
But HuffPost reported Friday that the DNC was already considering lifting the ban, with a vote scheduled Friday afternoon.
Introduced by DNC chairman Tom Perez, the resolution frames the decision as a means to empower workers in the fossil fuel industry, saying the DNC will accept "the longstanding and generous contributions of workers, including those in energy and related industries, who organize and donate to Democratic candidates individually or through their unions’ or employers’ political action committees."
During the Barack Obama administration, the DNC had a ban on all corporate PAC donations. That ban was lifted during the 2016 election by the then-DNC chairwoman, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D., Fla.), during which time the energy sector donated $2.6 million. An attempt to reinstate the ban in 2017 was voted down, despite efforts from progressive DNC member and Congressman Keith Ellison (D., Minn.).
The resolution passed overwhelmingly.
Of course. We should have known. Democratic candidates will now accept campaign contributions from fossil fuel companies in the interest of the workers.
On a conference call Friday, Perez said that after the June resolution passed, members of the labor community voiced concerns about the ban, calling "an attack on the working people in these industries." But he stressed that the DNC will still work to combat climate change.
“We have to draw the line that we are indeed a party of a big tent where all working people are welcome. We’re not a party that punishes workers simply based on how they make ends meet,” Perez said.
“We have been engaging with folks in the labor movement to address their concerns," he continued. "At the same time, we remain committed to the Democratic Party platform, which states unequivocally our support for combating climate change.”
This kind of hypocrisy is rare, even for a political party. It would be like the RNC approving a resolution allowing anti-tax cut PACs to donate to candidates. But it's a measure of how serious Democrats are about retaking the House that they would throw one of their prime constituencies - global warming advocates - under the bus.
It's difficult to reconcile taking money from oil and coal companies while piously proclaiming Republicans the enemy of Mother Earth. But most candidates won't bat an eye at the switcheroo and still bash the GOP as "deniers" all the way to the bank.