What the money buys
An introduction to Wal-Mart's lobbying empire
The Waltons have come a long way since the time when Sam Walton ran the company. Before 1998, Wal-Mart did not have a lobbying operation in Washington, DC and total political contributions came to only $140,000.1 A wake-up call from a friendly legislator would make the Walton family realize the error of their ways.
Former Representative Jay Dickey, an Arkansas Republican and friend to the Walton family, once said, "'...I was concerned that they would bail out of Washington altogether... Mr. Sam Walton just said we just are not going to get involved in these things. His success was just so phenomenal that no one could really argue with him." 2
Beginning in 1998, the company, "hired several new lobbyists and replaced its government affairs chief with Lee Culpepper, the former head lobbyist for the National Restaurant Association and a key player in backroom GOP politics... [and] quickly developed a network of well-connected outside lobbyists."3 Then, in 1999, the family hired Patton Boggs, one of the top lobbying firms in the city, to represent their interests.
Over the years, both Wal-Mart and the Walton family have expanded their roles in Washington by hiring in-house lobbyists, increasing political donation levels, and lobbying through trade groups like the Food Market Institute and Retail Industry Leaders Association. One thing is certain. The more pressure they feel from critics, the more Wal-Mart and the Walton family will spend to ensure success in Washington and at the state level. In the second quarter of 2008 alone, Wal-Mart "spent nearly $1.4 million...lobbying the federal government on union matters, cargo security and other issues."4
Certainly, as Wal-Mart has grown, so have the Walton's interests fueling their lobbying. Nevertheless, it has been the criticism the company has received for their business practices by independent groups, labor unions and political candidates that has more powerfully driven the company to assert its influence.
In 2005, both Wal-Mart Watch and Wake-Up Wal-Mart began to criticize the company like never before. At the 2005 Wal-Mart shareholders meeting, a reporter asked Lee Scott if he was concerned about groups aligning against his company. He said, "It would be silly to say you don't worry about it. Very few people in this room would have somebody who would like to see them stop growing and has $25 or $30 million in cash that they're going to use against you in one year. Very few people in this room would have that issue that you're faced with. I understand that not everybody is going to like us. I understand that there are good reasons why some people wouldn't like us." 5
In 2006 speech, Barack Obama said, "the battle to engage Wal-Mart and force them to examine their own corporate values and what their policies and approaches are to their workers and how they are going to be good corporate citizens, I think, is absolutely vital."6 John Edwards, who is renowned for his opposition to the retailer, also criticized the retailer stating, "It's obvious to me what's going on...Wal-Mart makes plenty of money. They need to pay their people well." 7
Lobbying Expenditures from 1998 - 2008
Since they began their operations in 1998, Wal-Mart's lobbying expenditures have been on a drastic rise. Gathering data from the Center for Responsive Politics and the Lobbying Disclosure Act Database, we have been able to generate trends and patterns that have emerged over the past decade in Wal-Mart lobbying:
- In 1998, Wal-Mart's lobbying budget for both in-house and external lobbying was less than $50,0008
- In 2008, Wal-Mart's in-house lobbying budget skyrocketed to $5.22 million9
- In 2007, Wal-Mart's external lobbying budget skyrocketed to $1.5 million10
- From 1999 to 2008, there has been a 3629% increase in Wal-Mart's lobbying expenditures for in-house lobbying.11
- From 1999 to 2007, there has been a 7425% increase in Wal-Mart's lobbying expenditures for outside firms12
- The key lobbying issues for Wal-Mart are banking/finance, healthcare, immigration, labor, and taxes.13
1 VandeHei, Jim. “Don't Discount Wal-Mart's Influence After Lott's Prodding, Retail Giant Decides to Expand Lobbying Shop” Roll Call, January 13, 2000.
3 Risen, Clay. “Store Lobby.” New Republic, July 25, 2005.
4 “Wal-Mart lobbied government for $1.4 million,” Associated Press, August 15, 2008.
5 Wal-Mart Shareholders’ Conference, 6/2/05
6 Kabel, Marcus. “Obama says Wal-Mart is part of necessary debate on pay and benefits.” Associated Press, November 16, 2006.
7 Roddy, Dennis B. “Edwards on the campaign trail again, this time against Wal-Mart.” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, August 5, 2006.
8 Risen, Clay. “Store Lobby.” New Republic, July 25, 2005.
9 Wal-Mart 2008 First, Second and Third Quarter lobbying filings, accessed using the Lobbying Disclosure Act database on 10/7/08
10 Full disclosure for 2008 not available yet we only took into account 1999 to 2007.
11 Internal calculation using Lobbying Disclosure Act database
12 Full disclosure for 2008 not available yet we only took into account 1999 to 2007.
13 Wal-Mart lobbying files accessed using the Lobbying Disclosure Act database
