Freshman Senator Josh Hawley (R. MO) is facing a lot of backlash for his role in trying to overturn the 2020 Presidential election and inciting a violent mob that attacked the Capitol building last Wednesday.
In addition to members of congress trying to get Hawley and others involved in the insurrection censured or even expelled from congress, Hawley is facing the loss of donations from several companies that previously supported him.
First, publisher Simon & Schuster pulled out of releasing Hawley’s whine-fest book about how big tech companies are persecuting conservatives, and now, a major corporation headquartered in Hawley’s state of Missouri, is demanding their donation to the young lawmaker be returned.
As several major companies such as Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, Marriott International, Commerce Bank, Dow Inc. and Mastercard have all suspended contributions to GOP lawmakers who had a role in trying to subvert democracy, Missouri based Hallmark is pulling their donations to Hawley and fellow coup supporter Roger Marshall (R. KS).
Not content with just ceasing future donations, Hallmark went further than those other companies in demanding Hawley and Marshall refund their contributions:
“Hallmark believes the peaceful transition of power is part of the bedrock of our democratic system, and we abhor violence of any kind. The recent actions of Senators Josh Hawley and Roger Marshall do not reflect our company’s values. As a result, HALLPAC requested Sens. Hawley and Marshall to return all HALLPAC campaign contributions.”
According to the Kansas City, Missouri company, their political PAC, HALLPAC, has donated $7,000 to Hawley and $5,000 to Marshall over the last two years.
Hallmark spokeswoman JiaoJiao Shen said the company’s political action committee spends between $50,000 and $60,000 annually on political activities, divided nearly evenly between Republican and Democratic candidates.
The St. Louis Post Dispatch reported that former Republican Senator John Danforth slammed Senator Josh Hawley’s (R. MO) plan to object to the certification of the 2020 presidential election results affirming that President-elect Joe Biden was the winner over President Donald Trump.
Danforth was a key supporter of Hawley’s 2018 run against former Senator Claire McCaskill, convincing him to run for the Senate seat over Republican Rep. Ann Wagner, who was considered McCaskill’s likely challenger at the time.
In a statement, Danforth said, “Lending credence to Trump’s false claim that the election was stolen is a highly destructive attack on our constitutional government. It is the opposite of conservative; it is radical. As one friend asked me, ‘What are my grandchildren to think of America if they are told that elections are fraudulent?’”
Hawley did not respond to the criticism from Danforth and did not respond to a request for comment by the Post-Dispatch. Danforth served in the U.S. Senate from 1976 until 1995 and is still a prominent voice among the GOP.
Danforth said he has been asked to comment on Hawley’s challenge to the vote because of his past support for Hawley’s Senate campaign.
“Citing my support for Josh Hawley’s campaigns, a number of people have asked me to comment on his decision to challenge votes of the electoral college,” Danforth noted.
Danforth has been a very vocal critic of President Trump’s refusal to accept his election defeat, but until now had been quiet about his thoughts on Hawley’s plan.
