SURPRISE! GERMAN CORPORATIONS DONATE MUCH MORE TO TRUMP THAN CLINTON

After WW2 I G Farben was broken up into several corporations, one of which was BASF.

Now BASF has been found to be financing the Trump campaign along with Allianz, Siemens and Deutsche Bank, and they are donating more to Trump than to Clinton in a ratio of at least 3:1.

German corporations with operations in the US reacted somewhat differently. As Die Welt reports, notable large concerns from Germany gave more than two-thirds of their election donations to the Republicans, and thus to Trump; above all BASF, Allianz, Siemens and Deutsche Bank.

Since US law prevents American or foreign companies from making direct donations to candidates, campaign funding takes place via so-called Political Action Committees (PACs). This is a legal construct allowing the circumvention of both the strict limit on donations as well as the ban on corporate donations. Via so-called super PACs, hundreds of millions of dollars flow into campaign advertising.

According to recent figures, the BASF PAC has distributed $399,000 in donations. The lion’s share of this money, a good 72 percent, flowed to the Republicans. This is not surprising, writes Die Welt. In previous election years, BASF, Allianz and Bayer had supported the Republicans.

According to Die Welt, in this election campaign the chemical and pharmaceutical group Bayer sent 80 percent of its donations to benefit the Republicans. At financial services company Allianz it was 72 percent.

Deutsche Bank, on the other hand, changed political camps. The paper writes: “While Deutsche Bank donated comparatively little, only $37,000, it is remarkable that 86 percent of this money was distributed to the Republican camp.” Such a clear tendency could not be seen in any other German company.

That Deutsche Bank sympathises with the Republicans is new. In 2006 and 2008, the bank had clearly tended toward the Democrats. The change of side was not surprising, “since Deutsche Bank is the largest lender to Donald Trump.” For the renovation of a hotel in Washington, Trump borrowed $170 million from Deutsche Bank.

[source : German corporations donate to Trump, WSWS, http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2016/07/23/germ-j23.html, 23rd July 2016]