This is the first in (hopefully) a new series taking a look at the intersection of corporations and politics. First up are the 3 main soft drink companies.
Cross-posted on my website Corporitics.
The Contenders:
Coca-Cola: Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Barq's Root Beer, Capri Sun, Dasani, Fanta, Fresca, Fruitopia, Hi-C, Mello Yello, Minute Maid, Mr. Pibb, Nestea, Odwalla, Powerade, Seagram's, Sprite, and Tab.
Dr Pepper Snapple Group: Dr. Pepper, Snapple, 7-Up, A&W Root Beer, Canada Dry, Country Time, Crush, Diet Rite, Hawaiian Punch, Nantucket Nectar, RC Cola, Schweppes, Squirt, Sun Drop, Sunkist, Welch's, and Yoo-hoo. It was spun off in 2008 from Cadbury Schweppes.
Pepsi: Pepsi, Gatorade, Tropicana, AMP Energy, Mountain Dew, Sierra Mist, and Aquafina. They also produce everything from Frito-Lay to Aunt Jemima to Funyons to Rice-A-Roni to Cap'n Crunch.
Voter Suppression (aka ALEC)
Coca-Cola dropped out in April 2012
Dr. Pepper Snapple Group was never a member
Pepsi dropped out in January 2012
The Gays!
Coca-Cola received a score of 100 on the HRC Corporate Equality Index (and is a corporate sponsor to boot!)
Dr. Pepper Snapple Group received a score of 60 on the HRC Corporate Equality Index.
Pepsi received a score of 95 on the HRC Corporate Equality Index
We Like To Party!
Coca-Cola donated $180,000 to the 2008 Republican National Convention and $155,000 to the 2008 Democratic National Convention.
Dr. Pepper Snapple Group did not participate.
Pepsi donated $250,000 to the 2008 Republican National Convention and $125,000 to the 2008 Democratic National Convention
Show Me the Money!
Coca-Cola has donated $2,502,100 with 54% going to Republicans and 46% going to Democrats.
Dr. Pepper Snapple Group has donated $17,000 with 68% going to Republicans and 32% going to Democrats. In January 2012, they donated $2,000 to the Republican Party of Wisconsin.
Pepsi has donated $3,254,200 with 69% going to Republicans and 31% going to Democrats.
Influence Buyer
Coca-Cola has spent $35,151,775 on political lobbying.
Dr. Pepper Snapple has not spent any money on political lobbying.
Pepsi has spent $31,584,754 on political lobbying.
The People
Coca-Cola has had labor issues with Teamsters including strikes in 2012 in West Virginia and Connecticut at some of the bottling plants.
Dr. Pepper Snapple Group had a strike by the Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store Union at a New York plant in 2010.
Pepsi's main labor controversy seems to center around Pepsi charging employees who smoke an extra $50 per month if they smoke or have obesity-related medical issues without going through the normal channels. The Teamsters have filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board. The union points out that Pepsi has spent at least $17,000,000 fighting soda taxes while assessing fees on its own employees who are overweight.
The Boss
Coca-Cola CEO Muhtar Kent donated $4,600 to McCain Palin and $1,500 to Barack Obama
Dr. Pepper Snapple CEO Larry Young has donated $20,000 to American Beverage PAC and $5,000 to the Dr. Pepper Snapple Group PAC
Pepsi CEO Indra Nooyi has donated $5,992 to the Pepsi Concerned Citizens Fund
The Results!
Coca-Cola is best for the gays and gave a higher percentage to the Democratic National Convention.
Dr. Pepper Snapple was never a part of ALEC, spends no money on lobbying, and has not donated much to politicians (although that $2,000 to the Republican Party of Wisconsin is troubling). They were formed in 2008 though, so they are new to the party.
Pepsi was the first to drop out of ALEC and scored very well on the Corporate Equality Index.