Who's Paying for the Conventions? Corporate Sponsors Pour Millions into Party Coffers

AT&T is the official wireless provider at the convention. Like Comcast, Motorola, Coca-Cola, Google, and a host of other corporate sponsors, the telecom giant has donated over a million dollars to the DNC in return for prominent display space and access to elected officials. But none of these companies have fully disclosed their projected contributions to the convention, according to a new report from the Campaign Finance Institute. Out of a reported 146 organizational and corporate donors to both the Democratic and Republican conventions, only 31 have disclosed information about their contributions, the report says.

We’re joined now from Houston by Steve Weissman. He’s the Associate Director for Policy at the Campaign Finance Institute. We’re also joined on the telephone by Glenn Greenwald, a constitutional law attorney and political and legal blogger for Salon.com. He joins us on the line from Brazil.

Stephen Weissman, Associate Director for Policy at the Campaign Finance Institute.

Glenn Greenwald, constitutional law attorney and political and legal blogger for Salon.com. He is the author of three books. His latest is Great American Hypocrites: Toppling the Big Myths of Republican Politics.

Related Links

• CFI Analysis of Convention Corporate and Other Donors
• Glenn Greenwald's "Unclaimed Territory"
• "The AT&T Convention in Denver"