After his boosters spent a full year blasting “evil corporations” and the like, Governor-elect Ralph Northam is showing absolutely zero reservations about accepting boatloads of corporate donations from civic-minded organizations in Virginia to fuel is inaugural ceremonies, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch:
Dominion Energy, the state’s top public service corporation whose bankrolling of Virginia politics has made some lawmakers increasingly uneasy, contributed $50,000 to Northam’s inaugural committee earlier this month, the same amount the company has given to help celebrate the last four incoming governors.
Northam’s committee received an additional $50,000 from the tobacco giant Altria, and took in $25,000 each from Anthem, Capital One, Hunton & Williams and Aetna Life & Casualty, well-known players in the health care, banking, legal and insurance fields.
Combined, the inaugural committee has taken in more than $250,000 from corporate or business donors, according to data on large donations compiled by the Virginia Public Access Project. The committee has reported raising almost $650,000 so far, including a $67,795 transfer from Northam’s PAC and several big checks from Democratic donors.
Dominion, Altria, Capital One, Hunton & Williams and Aetna? Even Omega Protein and the Virginia Association of Realtors got into the game.
Notably omitted? Stronger Together PAC — a final gift from the political action committee of outgoing Governor Terry McAuliffe, no doubt.
Still, it would appear that for all the outrage and violence directed towards corporations by the progressive left, they fall ominously silent by the time they behold filthy lucre.
Nevertheless, perhaps all this talk about Northam performing a volte face on energy issues and tax reform might be bearing fruit after all? Is Northam really positioning himself to extend the mightiest of middle fingers to the environmentalists and Russian-influenced “green Antifa” set once he is in power?
Given the lackluster quality of his cabinet thus far, one can only suspect that Northam is surrounding himself with people prepared to take orders from the bureaucracy, not exactly stand firm on principle (or anything the progressive left thought they were advancing this 2017).
Either way, one can’t help but watch with fascination.
