“Boycott Target” Effort Proceeds
The boycott effort started about a month ago when it was revealed that the retailer donated $150,000 to Tom Emmer, a Republican gubernatorial candidate in Minnesota who opposes same-sex marriage. But you wouldn’t necessarily know any of that from viewing the above ad, which does not mention same-sex marriage and instead focuses on corporate contributions. The commercial comes courtesy of MoveOn.org, which is still steaming from a January 21 Supreme Court decision, Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, that allows for more corporate cash in elections.
MoveOn said it will run the ad nationally on MSNBC, where it will no doubt have a big supporter in the cable channel’s Keith Olbermann, who complained on his show after the Supreme Court decision that “within ten years every politician in this country will be a prostitute.” Olbermann’s rather excitable commentary invokes Dred Scott, evolution, Rush Limbaugh and slavery.
Asked why MoveOn is targeting Target and not other companies that make political donations — like MSNBC parent GE, for example — a MoveOn spokesman said: “Target is one of the first companies to so publicly take advantage of the Citizens United ruling and attempt to buy an election.”
