Wall Street Firms Halt Political Contributions After Capitol Riot

News January 11, 2021 at 05:31 PM
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Demonstrators clash with U.S. Capitol police officers while trying to enter the Capitol building during a protest outside of in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021. The U.S. Capitol was placed under lockdown and Vice President Mike Pence left the floor of Congress as hundreds of protesters swarmed past barricades surrounding the building where lawmakers were debating Joe Biden's victory in the Electoral College. Photographer: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg Demonstrators clash with U.S. Capitol police officers while entering the Capitol building on Jan. 6. (Photo: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg)

Wall Street firms are voting with their wallets following last week's storming of the U.S. Capitol by a mob of Trump supporters, suspending contributions from their political action committees to members of Congress.

Some like Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs are pausing contributions to Republicans and Democrats alike for a time. Morgan Stanley, though, is suspending its contributions to members of Congress who did not vote to certify the results of the Electoral College, according to a spokesperson.

Goldman is in the process of reviewing the details and expects the impact will then fall on those who obstructed the results of the presidential election when contributions resume. 

Citigroup similarly did not name either party, but a statement by Candi Wolff, head of global government affairs, said the bank intends "to pause our contributions during the quarter as the country goes through the presidential transition and hopefully emerges from these events stronger and more united."

Wolff added that Citigroup "will not support candidates who do not respect the rule of law." 

She also highlighted a $1,000 donation the bank had given to the campaign of Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., who was among the congressional leaders opposing certification of Biden's presidential win.

State Street posted a statement on its website explaining that its PAC "will not contribute to lawmakers who supported last week's efforts to undermine our democracy."

The asset manager says it "will establish a process to evaluate contributions prospectively to ensure we are not supporting any candidates whom we believe are subverting the core democratic principle  democratic principles of our Constitution."

A total of 139 representatives in the House and eight senators opposed certification of Joe Biden's Electoral College win in one or two challenges to certification — for Georgia and Pennsylvania — that Congress voted on last week.

The vote was delayed by the storming of the Capitol on Wednesday, during which congressional members and Vice President Mike Pence had to abandon the proceedings and were rushed to undisclosed locations for their safety while many staff members hid in offices barricaded against the mobs outside.

Five people died in the mayhem, including one of the rioters and a Capitol police officer. The vote resumed that evening ending in certification of Biden's win at around 4 a.m. ET.

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