Republican elected officials, along with media allies and other outside groups, are waging a coordinated campaign, often with public funds, to pressure businesses to support their agenda and punish firms that support “woke” causes, the New York Times reports. Republicans are leveraging their legislative and financial power to pressure companies to oppose climate action and other issues including voting, abortion, and LGBTQ rights. This leverage includes punishing financial services firms that divest from fossil fuels, or even simply assess environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues when making investment decisions. “There is a coordinated effort to chill corporate engagement on these issues,” Daniella Ballou-Aares, head of the Leadership Now Project, an NGO that pushes firms to defend democracy. “And it is an effective campaign. Companies are starting to go into hiding.” (New York Times $)
