| Article Index |
|---|
| Report: Alcohol Fuels the Presidential Campaign |
| Page 2 |
| Page 3 |
| Page 4 |
| All Pages |
 |
TAKE ACTION PRESS RELEASE 2008 CONGRESSIONAL CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS ACTION ALERT RESPONSES |
Alcohol Fuels the Presidential Campaign:
Alcohol Industry Watchdog Calls on
McCain and Obama to Return Big Alcohol's Donations
The President of the United States oversees several federal agencies dealing with alcohol policy, such as the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, which approves alcohol products and the Federal Trade Commission, which is regulates industry advertising practices. The President also appoints the Surgeon General, who warns the public about the dangers of alcohol use.
In the 2008 presidential race, the alcohol industry has donated vast sums of money to Senators John McCain and Barack Obama. Marin Institute, the alcohol industry watchdog, calls on both major party presidential candidates to return Big Alcohol donations from Anheuser-Busch, SAB Miller, MolsonCoors, and Diageo and all their affiliates. Below are some facts on Big Alcohol and the 2008 race for the White House.
Campaign Contributions
- To date, the alcohol industry has donated over $750,000 to the presidential campaigns of John McCain and Barack Obama. Donations have been slightly weighted towards Senator McCain, who received $466,000 compared with $293,800 donated to Senator Obama.*
- Alcohol industry donations are more than five times higher than tobacco industry donations and nearly twice as much as that donated by the casino and gambling industries.*
- This is part of a worrying trend that has seen alcohol industry contributions to presidential candidates skyrocket in recent elections. In 1992 and 1996, total alcohol industry contributions to the Democratic and Republican candidates were $209,000 and $312,000 respectively. In 2000 and 2004, contributions increased to $531,000 and $1,063,000 respectively.
- Contributions come from all the major alcohol corporations, with money donated by Anheuser-Busch, Diageo, SABMiller, and Molson Coors Brewing, among many others.
- John McCain is the largest recipient of Anheuser-Busch donations of any national politician, receiving over $23,000 this cycle, about $9,000 more than the next highest recipient - Representative Sam Graves from Missouri, the home of Anheuser-Busch.
Source: Open Secrets
