Tech giants ramp up political spending to shape policies in 2024 U.S. elections

SACRAMENTO, the United States, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) -- Google's record-breaking lobbying push of 10.7 million U.S. dollars in California in summer this year signaled an aggressive trend of tech companies wielding financial influence to shape legislation affecting their interests ahead of the 2024 elections.

The search giant's spending in California from July through September 2024 was nearly 90 times higher than the same period in 2023, making it the state's highest-spending lobbyist during the quarter, according to a report from CalMatters on Wednesday.

This unprecedented surge came as Google fought against proposed legislation in California that would have required tech platforms to pay news outlets for publishing their content, the non-profile news website focusing on local news in the Golden State said.

The company channeled most of its lobbying funds through two organizations: 7 million dollars to the Computer and Communications Industry Association and 2.75 million dollars to the California Taxpayers Association.

According to state records, these groups ran television and social media advertisements opposing the journalism funding bills.

"That agreement was an escape clause for Google," said California State Senator Steve Glazer, referring to the eventual deal where Google agreed to provide 55 million dollars over five years for local newsrooms instead of facing potentially more significant mandatory payments under the proposed legislation.

This intensive lobbying effort in California reflected a broader pattern of tech industry political spending nationwide. In 19 states that require full disclosure, major tech companies and industry trade groups tripled their lobbying expenditures from 4.4 million dollars in 2013 to 13.4 million dollars in 2023, according to an OpenSecrets analysis reported by Pluribus News.

The surge in political spending extended beyond traditional lobbying. The crypto industry, representing a new frontier of tech influence, has emerged as one of the largest corporate donors in the 2024 election cycle.

According to The New Yorker, pro-crypto donors were responsible for almost half of all corporate donations to Political Action Committees (PACs) in the 2024 election cycle.

A notable example of this influence was the 2024 California U.S. Senate primary, where a crypto-backed super PAC named Fairshake spent approximately 10 million dollars in attack ads against candidate U.S. Congresswoman Katie Porter, who ultimately lost the primary.

"When you have members who are afraid of 10 million dollars being spent overnight against them, the will in Washington to do what's right disappears pretty quickly," Porter told The New Yorker.

The tech industry's growing political involvement represents a significant shift from its traditionally apolitical stance.

"If you were a venture capitalist or CEO, you might hire lobbyists to talk to politicians or gossip with you, but, beyond that, most of the Valley thought politics was stupid," a senior tech executive told The New Yorker, describing the industry's attitude until the mid-2010s.

Tech lobbying intensified as states increasingly took the lead in regulating various aspects of the industry, from data privacy to artificial intelligence (AI). This year alone, lawmakers in 45 states introduced more than 600 AI-related bills, with over 50 approved so far, according to a MultiState tracking reported by Pluribus News.

Some state lawmakers have begun pushing back against the industry's aggressive lobbying tactics. "When people come with good faith suggestions, we work with them," said Connecticut State Senator James Maroney. "But coming in and saying, 'delete sections one to 18 of a bill' is not good faith," he told Pluribus News.

The impact of tech industry lobbying is already evident in legislative outcomes.

In California, a first-in-nation attempt to fine social media companies for harming young users collapsed in August 2024 after facing fierce industry opposition, according to Politico. The bill's author, California State Assemblymember Josh Lowenthal, attributed its failure to "poison pill amendments" that served "special interests."

Chris Lehane, a prominent political operative now working with OpenAI, explained to The New Yorker that tech platforms had become potentially the most potent cohort in politics due to their ability to communicate instantly with hundreds of millions of people.

"If Airbnb can engage fifteen thousand hosts in a city, that can have an impact on who wins a city-council race or the mayoralty," he said, adding that "in a congressional or Senate race, fifty thousand votes can make all the difference."

This growing influence of tech money in politics has raised concerns about its impact on democratic processes. One Coinbase employee told The New Yorker, "This isn't enlightened debate and discussion. This is about using money to be a bully, so everyone knows you're the scariest ones on the playground."