Washington's Biggest Lobbyist, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Gets Shut Out
A month before his inauguration, and shortly after he had finished a round of golf with Tiger Woods, Donald Trump was introduced to an adviser of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the chief advocacy group for American corporations.
Stanton Anderson stood in the clubhouse of Mr. Trump’s golf course in West Palm Beach, Fla., and extended his hand to the president-elect.
Mr. Trump refused it.
“You guys did everything to stop me,” Mr. Trump said, his face reddening, according to two people who were there. “I haven’t forgotten.”
In the two years since, relations between Mr. Trump and Washington’s biggest lobbying organization haven’t much improved.
The chill has hurt the U.S. Chamber, which for decades was the unmatched voice of industry. Its revenue has dipped, spending on lobbying and elections has fallen, and its large-donor pool has shrunk.
After eight years tussling with the Obama administration, the Chamber hoped a business-friendly administration would help reanimate its power. But Mr. Trump’s populism has refashioned the GOP agenda, and that has cut against priorities of various chamber constituencies that oppose tariffs and view immigration as a useful labor supply.
“I feel they are not much of a force anymore,” said U.S. Rep. Justin Amash (R., Mich.), a conservative Republican who has been at odds with the chamber. “I believe in free markets and am against cronyism and corporate welfare, and they support those things.”
Unlike its smaller competitors, the chamber has significant overhead. Mr. Donohue has said the group needs about $1 million each workday to cover its 500 employees, fund advocacy work and keep the lights on at the building it owns across from the White House.
In 2017, the chamber spent $86 million on salaries and benefits, which accounted for more than half of its revenue that year.
By comparison, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, the drug industry trade association known as PhRMA, spent $70 million a year in salaries in 2017, equal to about 15% of its annual revenue, according to tax filings.
Mr. Donohue earned $6.6 million in 2017, making him the highest-paid head of any Washington trade group. His perquisites cost more, according to people familiar with chamber finances.
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