U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) holds a news conference at Statuary Hall at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, February 2, 2023.
Jonathan Ernst | Reuters
The two most senior Republican leaders in the US House of Representatives will go to war with the US Chamber of Commerce when the new Congress takes shape.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and Republican House Majority Leader Steve Scalise both declined to meet the House. room after the lobby group endorsed a number of Democrats in the past two elections, it is clear that the enemies of two of the most powerful leaders in Congress.
“America’s Priority” room Mark Bednar, McCarthy’s chief spokesman, told CNBC during a news conference that the Commerce Department “didn’t align with Republican priorities in the House or the interests of its own members, and that they One should not expect a meeting with Chairman McCarthy for as long as it is. declare.
Scalise also won’t respond to roomaccording to spokeswoman Lauren Fine.
“Washington has completely abandoned the pro-business philosophy of most local Chambers across the United States,” she said. Fine also took aim at the Chamber’s move to endorse Democrats running for House seats and said that “unless the Chamber returns to their traditional pro-business roots, they should not expect waiting for any engagements with the Scalise Majority Leader’s office.”
Denying access to the Chamber could also lead other Republicans in the House to block the nation’s largest business organization.
The Chamber has continued to actively lobby on Capitol Hill despite the ongoing battle with top Republicans. The group spent nearly $21 million on lobbying in the fourth quarter of last year alone, according to their latest disclosure report. The form shows they have lobbied for lawmakers in the House and Senate, as well as Biden’s White House officials, on various bills, including new tax proposals as well as federal aid. United States for Ukraine in the conflict with Russia.
McCarthy’s refusal to meet with the Chamber is the latest strike in an ongoing feud between some Republicans in the House and the Chamber of Commerce. intercept report that House Republicans plan to investigate the Chamber when Republican lawmakers take in anyone who supports President Joe Biden’s push for environmental, social, and governance regulations. (ESG) more. Daily caller report that the Chamber plans to sue the Securities and Exchange Commission if it goes ahead with its climate change-related disclosure rule.
Republican lawmakers are drafting questions to send to the Chamber in the coming weeks, asking about their stance on ESG issues as well as questioning some of the behavior of the Chamber, including permission report Chamber’s former CEO, Thomas Donohue, uses the commercial corporation’s jet for personal trips, according to lawmakers and advisers aiming to probe the organization. These people declined to be named to speak freely about private discussions.
Tim Doyle, a spokesman for the Chamber of Commerce, told CNBC in a statement that the group’s policies are more aligned with House Republicans than Democrats.
“The Chamber’s priorities include lowering taxes, reducing spending, combating over-regulation and more, and we’re aligned with House Republicans on a variety of issues,” Doyle said. important to American businesses of all sizes.” “We disagree with those who believe that the Chamber should become a one-party partisan organization, and we recognize that the differences have created some tension. However, we will continue to do what we can. We’ve been doing it for over 110 years, and that’s advancing the free-market priority of the American business community.”
House Representatives Whip Majority Tom Emmer, R-Minn., House Republican Conference Chairman, Representative Elise Stefanik, RN.Y., and Representative Gary Palmer, R-Ala., did not respond to a request for comment.
McCarthy’s fury against the Chamber begins after the group agree 23 House Democrats in the 2020 election cycle when Republicans failed to regain their majority. Room report endorsed 23 Republican candidates in the House of Representatives and four Democratic candidates in the 2022 race.
McCarthy speak Breitbart News last year before the recent November election that “the Chamber has long since left the party” and criticized the organization for supporting the Democratic Party. “I just assume they have as much influence in the future as they do now – they don’t,” McCarthy said at the time.
axis report that McCarthy had privately discussed with Chamber of Commerce board members and state leaders the idea of replacing current Chamber of Commerce president and CEO Suzanne Clark. The Chamber’s chief executive was recently approved for a new five-year term, according to a memo sent to the board by Mark Ordan, the board’s chairman. The memo was sent to members of the council on Monday.
While McCarthy takes aim at the Chamber, the business lobbying juggernaut continues to run business as usual.
Neil Bradley, McCarthy’s former deputy chief of staff and current executive vice president and director of policy at the Chamber, recently said “their team engages leaders, presidents, and members members rank daily and weekly. That has always been the case and hasn’t changed over the past year.”
The latest Chamber of Commerce public tax documents from 2021 show that the organization raised just over $197 million that year, in addition to the $218 million it raised in 2020. More than $105 million in the organization’s 2021 budget has been spent on payroll and employee benefits, the forms show.
Donohue, who resigned as CEO from the Inner Room 2021, still received $9.2 million in total compensation that year. Donohue’s compensation in 2021 includes $8.95 million in bonuses and incentive bonuses, according to the forms.
“Mr. Donohue’s compensation consists of a bonus for 2020 activities and a prorated portion of a bonus for 2021 activities, both of which are payable to him in 2021,” the filing said. write.
Clark, now chairman and chief executive officer of the lobbying group, received total compensation of $5.1 million in 2021, according to the forms. That includes a $3.75 million bonus and incentive package.
