Unhappiness with Chamber's stance on climate not enough to quit group

It's no secret that The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has been battling tooth and nail against climate policy on Capitol Hill, and in particular, against any cap-and-trade legislation. But the strong opposition to aggressive action on climate change and the millions of dollars the Chamber has spent on lobbying against action on climate has several companies questioning their desire to be associated with the umbrella business organization's controversial position.

But while several large corporations including Apple, PG&E have acted on those desires and parted ways with the Chamber over the climate issue, there is also a bloc of companies who are hanging on by a thread. Last week, Best Buy joined companies like Toyota and Nike who have publicly struggled with their support for the Chamber because of their stance on climate, but have yet to find enough cause to leave the massive trade group. Best Buy said in a statement:

"The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is a membership organization with varied business stakeholders and interests. Those interests among industry don’t always align; on the issue of climate change legislation and regulatory actions, we have certainly seen this to be the case. Best Buy has stated that we are supportive of comprehensive climate change legislation and working to move toward a low carbon economy. With regard to the Chamber’s climate initiatives, the Chamber has not spoken for Best Buy on these issues. We have shared our views with the Chamber and will continue to do so."

The move from Best Buy came after a group of 43 investors sent a letter to the company pressuring it to publicly distance itself from the Chamber several weeks ago and is the latest of several similar actions initiated by groups of powerful investors who favor strong climate and energy policy.

Photo: angela n. via flickr/Creative Commons