After Taking Millions from Corporate PACs, Maloney Wants ‘Big Corporate Money Out of Politics’

DCCC chairman took over $500k from corporations last cycle

Matthew Foldi • April 7, 2021 1:50 pm

Democratic congressman Sean Patrick Maloney pledged last month to get corporate money out of politics, but campaign finance records show he took over half a million dollars from corporations last cycle alone.

Maloney, who chairs the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), told voters in his New York district that his party’s top legislative item, HR1, is needed to get big money out of politics. “We gotta get this big money out of politics and HR1 would do that,” Maloney said, “by getting big corporate money out of politics.”

Unmentioned by Maloney during the town hall was that he took over $500,000 from corporate political action committees last cycle, according to a Washington Free Beacon analysis of campaign contributions. Among the contributions to Maloney’s campaign were thousands of dollars from United Healthcare, Amazon, Bank of America, Comcast, Delta, JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley, and Coca-Cola.

Maloney’s office did not respond to a request for comment. Records show Maloney and his affiliated PACs have taken millions of dollars worth of corporate money since he was first elected to Congress in 2010.

Maloney’s remarks on corporate money come as Democrats press corporations to punish Republicans for political views they deem unacceptable. In Georgia, Democrats, including President Joe Biden, pressured Major League Baseball to move its annual All-Star Game from Atlanta over objections to a Republican-passed election reform bill. Delta and Coca-Cola, both headquartered in Georgia, have been on the receiving end of pressure campaigns from activists to speak out against Republicans.

As recently as January, Maloney complained publicly after some corporations announced they would be cutting off political spending to both parties after rioters entered the U.S. Capitol. He said Democrats were “taking it personally” and didn’t think his party should lose out on corporate money because of Republican objections to the election results.

“When corporate America seeks to walk around the block and leave us alone in this fight, we’re taking it personally,” Maloney said. “This is an offensive act to those of us who have been defending our Constitution.”

In addition to the millions of dollars Maloney himself has taken from corporations, the Maloney-chaired DCCC has already raised almost a quarter of a million dollars since he took over in December.

FEC records show the DCCC has taken over $220,000 in corporate contributions, including tens of thousands of dollars from companies, such as FedEx and CSX Corporation, that are lobbying on transportation issues, which fall under Maloney’s jurisdiction as a member of the House Transportation Committee.

According to OpenSecrets calculations, Maloney received more from the cruise ship industry than any other House member last cycle. The only politician to receive more than Maloney from the cruise industry is President Joe Biden.

The DCCC did not respond to requests for comment about whether it will continue taking corporate money moving forward.