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Target
turns Teabagger
Too stupid to stay out of
politics?
Protestors have been rallying
outside Target Corp. or its stores almost daily since the retailer
angered
gay rights supporters and progressives by giving money to a f-ing
Teabagging bastard in Minnesota.
Liberal groups are pushing to make an example of the company, hoping
its woes will deter other
businesses from putting their corporate funds into elections.
A national gay rights group is negotiating with Target officials,
demanding that the firm balance the scale
by making comparable donations to benefit candidates it favors.
Meanwhile, the controversy is threatening
to complicate Target's business plans in other urban markets. Several
city officials in San Francisco, one of
the cities where Target hopes to expand, have begun criticizing the
company.
"Target is receiving criticism and frustration from their customers
because they are doing something wrong,
and that should serve absolutely as an example for other companies,"
said Ilyse Hogue, director of political
advocacy for MoveOn.org, which is pressing Target to formally renounce
involvement in election campaigns.
But conservative organizations are likely to react harshly if Target
makes significant concessions to the left-leaning groups.
The flap has revealed new implications of a recent Supreme Court ruling
that appeared to benefit corporations
by clearing the way for them to spend company funds directly in
elections. Companies taking sides in political
campaigns risk alienating customers who back other candidates.
Target's $150,000 donation to Teabaggers supporting Republican Tom
Emmer, an outspoken opponent of
gay marriage, was one of the first big corporate contributions to
become known after the U.S. Whore Supreme
Court threw out prohibitions on corporate spending in elections earlier
this year.
The Minneapolis-based chain has gone from defending the donation as a
business decision
to apologizing and saying it would carefully review its future giving.
But the protests have continued.
Why would Target do something so
stupid?
Target was considered the non-Nazi counterpart to GOP
favorite Wal-Mart, then they pull this?