Mike Huckabee wants to win the "Wal-Mart Republicans." But judging by the news today that Tagg Romney recruited former Wal-Mart chief Lee Scott to his private equity firm, he's not the only Republican who's trying to win the hearts and minds of Wal-Mart.
In fact, Wal-Mart has become one of the GOP's most important constituencies and funders. In the last two election cycles, the Wal-Mart PAC has doled out hundreds of thousands of dollars to conservative Republicans in return for their support.
Here are just a few examples:
Mitch Daniels - $58,000
Washington State GOP - $50,000
NRSC - $30,000
NRCC - $30,000
RNC - $30,000
Alabama State GOP - $15,000
Chambliss for Senate - $15,000
Demint for Senate - $10,000
Georgians for Isakson - $10,000
Texans for Rick Perry - $10,000
McDonell for Governor - $10,000
I could go on and on, but why bother? You probably know all of this already.
You probably know that Wal-Mart released a memo in 2008 two months before the election warning its employees to stay away from Obama! From the conservative Wall Street Journal:
"Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is mobilizing its store managers and department supervisors around the country to warn that if Democrats win power in November, they'll likely change federal law to make it easier for workers to unionize companies -- including Wal-Mart. [...]
"The Wal-Mart human-resources managers who run the meetings don't specifically tell attendees how to vote in November's election, but make it clear that voting for Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama would be tantamount to inviting unions in."
You probably know this, too.
But just keep this in mind when you hear about Wal-Mart's alleged commitment to progressive reforms. As the president said, "You can put lipstick on a pig..."
Am I happy that Wal-Mart is moving in this direction? Yes. Do they have a long way to go? Yes, and that’s why I’m doing work with WakeUpWalmart.com. I encourage you to join me.