Updated: Not One Positive Thing about Being Involved in the U.S. Chamber

Second New Hampshire Chamber Defects from National Org Since September

On Friday, the Greater Hudson Chamber of Commerce board of directors voted not to renew its membership with the U.S. Chamber, because recent political advertisements by the U.S. Chamber in support of specific parties and candidates were in “direct conflict” with the foundation of the Hudson chamber.

“I don’t believe we lose anything,” Jerry Mayotte, executive vice president of the Greater Hudson Chamber of Commerce said. “As far as I’m concerned, I could not find one positive thing to say about being involved in the U.S. Chamber.”

Other New Hampshire chambers explain that they abstain from U.S. Chamber membership because their member companies espouse a wide array of political views. Eighty-five percent of the U.S. Chamber’s spending goes toward Republicans, leading some to call the group a shadow GOP.

Robin Comstock, president and CEO of the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce, also clarified at a local debate that, “We are not accredited by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce; we are not a member. The only similarity is that we share a name.”

In September, another New Hampshire chamber distanced itself from the U.S. Chamber for a “dishonest” attack ad. The U.S. Chamber released an ad against current Congressman and Senate candidate Paul Hodes that Political Correction called “deeply dishonest.” A number of New Hampshire voters contacted their local chamber to complain, and the president of the Concord Chamber felt compelled to explain that the Concord Chamber does “not participate in U.S. Chamber political programs,” and that the “Greater Concord Chamber and the U.S. Chamber operate very differently from one another.”

New Hampshire is not alone. Political activity has raised ire with local chambers throughout this election season.

In North Carolina, the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce president established its independence from the U.S. Chamber. The Watauga Democrat reports that the Boone Chamber president Dan Meyer said "in effect," "we ain't them," in response to questions about the U.S. Chamber's possible use of foreign funds on political activity.

A local paper chronicled the difference between the U.S. Chamber’s “high-profile, cash-heavy and targeted approach” to election spending, and that of the Delaware Chamber of Commerce. The Delaware Chamber makes decisions about elections based solely on whether a candidate is good for the community. "If the person supports business, we support them. ... It's got nothing to do with D's or R's,” says Delaware Chamber CEO Jim Wolfe.

In September, the California Chamber of Commerce followed in the U.S. Chamber’s political-overreaching footsteps, and endorsed Republican candidate Meg Whitman for governor. Thought leaders in California left the group in protest, including Community College Chancellor Jack Scott, who wrote, "I do not believe the board is using sound judgment by catapulting the California Chamber of Commerce into the center of a fierce political contest…It is destructive to the chamber's core mission and the businesses it represents when it becomes a partisan operation." CalChamber had already had to pull an ad it ran against Jerry Brown after four of its board members complained that it was a “hit job that ‘undermines the Chamber’s credibility.’”

Seeing CalChamber suffer from political overreaching hasn’t moved the U.S. Chamber off its political agenda – it endorsed Whitman last week.

Companies and Local Chambers That Have Quit the Chamber

Quit the U.S. Chamber   

 Apple

Excelon

PNM Resources

PG&E

PSEG

Mohawk Paper

San Francisco Chamber of Commerce

Greater Hudson Chamber of Commerce

Quit the U.S. Chamber Board   

Nike

Refused to Join U.S. Chamber

NRG Energy

Denounced U.S. Chamber Climate Policy

Duke Energy

Johnson and Johnson

General Electric

Alcoa

Entergy

Microsoft

Royal Dutch Shell

 Seventh Generation

 Dow

 PEPCO

 Cisco Systems

 Best Buy

San Jose CoC

Greater New York CoC

Eastern Connecticut CoC

Greater Seattle CoC

Aspen CoC and Resort Association

Las Vegas CoC

Mountain View, California CoC

Gulf Coast Chambers of Commerce