Apparently, the Chamber has been misrepresenting its membership numbers. The Chamber has been quoting that 3 million members are part of its organization. However, it appears the Chamber may have merely 300,000 members—perhaps even much less, due to the Chamber’s secrecy on its membership numbers. Of course, misrepresentation is a indication of one’s credibility. Consequently, why should businesses or the American public trust the Chamber? Many high profile businesses and utilities such as Apple, Exelon, PNM Resources, Pacific Gas and Electric, and Levi Strauss & Co have already departed the lobbying firm. Most recently, “political disagreements with the US Chamber of Commerce have prompted the San Francisco Chamber to drop out of a program that automatically enrolled many of its members in the national group.”
The Chamber has been lobbying aggressively against climate change legislation, even calling for a “public hearing on the scientific evidence for man-made climate change. . . . [or] ‘the Scopes monkey trial of the 21st Century.’” The Chamber’s misrepresentations are very relevant, since lobbying on the behalf of and consequently representing 3 million members certainly impacts how businesses and the public perceives efforts to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. The Chamber should be a leader in tackling climate change and energy issues—not advocating corporate interests. Certainly, the Chamber is nothing more but a wolf in sheep’s clothing. From Greenwire (emphasis added):
In an e-mail to E&E this morning, [Brad Peck, senior director for communication publishing at the U.S. Chamber] acknowledged, “This does often get reported in the press as 3 million members without the qualification. That is hardly our fault.”
Peck also argued that Mother Jones‘ reporting on the issue has crossed into advocacy and should be treated as such.
“Mother Jones believes that we should use the smaller number of 300,000 to indicate our direct membership. We are comfortable using the larger number for many concrete reasons,” Peck wrote.
Peck declined to provide a membership list for the chamber, saying it was policy not to disclose its associations with specific businesses unless they did it first.
. . .
But in the eyes of some environmentalists, the fight over the chamber’s membership strikes at the heart of the point that they have been trying to make in their attacks on the organization — that it does not represent the overwhelming majority of American mainstream businesses, but only a small number of powerful interests.
“They use the 3 million figure all the time, and if it’s false — and it certainly appears at best to be a misrepresentation — it raises another significant question about their credibility,” said Peter Altman, climate campaign director at the Natural Resources Defense Council.
Historically, the U.S. Chamber has been perhaps the single most powerful lobbying source in Washington, and over the past decade, it has spent more on lobbying than any other organization, according to lobbying records. Indeed, many environmentalists and others have described it as the most influential force opposing the cap-and-trade legislation moving through Congress.
More from Mother Jones:
But Peck’s statement appears to be contradicted by a recent quote from the Chamber’s spokesman. “We have over 3 million members, and we don’t comment on the comings and goings of our membership,” spokesman Eric Wholschlegel told the New York Times last month in a story about the utility PG&E’s departure from the Chamber over its climate policy. The Chamber also does not cite the smaller membership number on its website or many (if not all) of its press releases. And its written materials typically do not explain the meaning of the “3 million” number, failing to use the term “federation members,” let alone clarify what it means.
In the E&E piece, the Chamber also lashed out at my reporting of the issue, saying that it “has crossed into advocacy and should be treated as such.” E&E published its piece a day after I sent an open letter to one of its reporters questioning his continued citation of the Chamber’s “3 million members.” If advocacy is the same thing as requesting that other media outlets report the facts, then I am guilty as charged. Or maybe Peck considers the choice of which number to use an ideological issue. If that’s the case, then E&E and the Associated Press are to the right of the Wall Street Journal, which reports the Chamber’s membership as 300,000.
Also, the Chamber is currently advocating failed ideas to solve America’s most pressing problems. From Politics Daily:
The Chamber will spend tens of millions of dollars and buy advertising nationwide to persuade the American public that its agenda — low taxes, open markets, and loose regulation — are crucial elements of a job recovery. The new television spots, previewed for staff and press at the launch event Wednesday, celebrate small American entrepreneurs and argue that government intervention will not spur permanent job growth.
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