Wall Street Abandons Obama, Democrats

Employees of financial-services companies have
given Democrats $20 million less than they have
given to Republicans during the current election
cycle. (photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

By Caitlin Dickson, The Daily Beast

19 August 12

In a reversal from 2008, employees of financial-services companies have given most of their $128 million and counting in 2012 political donations to groups and candidates on the right. Sorry, Obama.

n 2008 Wall Street loved Barack Obama. Four years later, even after billions in bailout money went to the banks under Obama's watch, the tide has turned - by about $20 million.

That's the difference between what securities and investment firms and their employees have given to Republican candidates, the GOP, and right-leaning political-action committees during the current election cycle ($56 million) and what they've given to Democrats ($35 million), according to data compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics.

Goldman Sachs and its workers, for instance, made more than $6 million in political contributions in 2008, according to the CRP, which based its research on data provided by the Federal Election Commission. Some 75 percent of that loot went to the Democratic Party or one of its candidates, and 25 percent went to Republicans. In the 2012 cycle, the firm or its employees have so far given nearly $5 million, with the majority (56 percent) going to the GOP.

One reason for the shift, according to the CRP, might be that people in finance tend to donate to the party that controls Congress and therefore the finance committees. In 2008 that was the Democrats. Today it's the Republicans.  READ MORE