Automobile manufacturer Toyota released a statement declaring that it would no longer donate to the campaigns of any Republican members of Congress who objected to the controversial results of the 2020 election, as reported by USA Today.
Edward Lewis, a spokesman for Toyota Motor Corp, gave a statement via email to The Detroit News claiming that “Toyota is committed to supporting and promoting actions that further our democracy,” without expanding on what exactly is meant by the word “democracy.” He then goes on to say that “our company has long-standing relationships with Members of Congress across the political spectrum, especially those representing our U.S. operations.”
Admitting to the financial concerns behind their decision, Lewis said that “[our] PAC decision to support select Members of Congress who contested the [2020 election] results troubled some stakeholders. We are actively listening to our stakeholders and, at this time, we have decided to stop contributing to those members of Congress who contested the certification of certain states in the 2020 election.”
The decision reflects a stark reversal for Toyota, which reaffirmed as recently as April that it would continue donating to certain members of Congress regardless of how they voted in the electoral certification process. Over 140 Republicans in Congress, across both houses, voted against certifying at least some of the electoral college results, pointing to widespread and credible accusations of voter fraud in the key swing states, which may have been enough to swing the election away from President Donald Trump and in favor of Democrat Joe Biden.
As a result, Toyota came under fire by several radical groups, including the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), and the far-left Lincoln Project. CREW issued a statement saying that certain companies “have had to choose whether to do their part to uphold our democracy by turning off the flow of corporate donations to these members…or to continue to support them in order to seek political influence.”
In one ad released by the Lincoln Project against Toyota, the group – which has been struggling with numerous scandals, including the revelation that one of its founding members, John Weaver, was secretly a serial sexual predator – claimed without evidence that “Toyota vehicles feature…more White nationalism than you might’ve expected.” After Toyota backed down, the Lincoln Project said on Twitter that it hoped “the rest of Corporate America will follow their lead.”