Rent seeking is defined as the use of resources to defend one's "rents" (or profits above the norm). Here, WM is using resources to defend the right of free contract:
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - After years of waging its political wars almost exclusively on the local level, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is spending aggressively this election in support of favored statewide candidates and ballot measures - including donations to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the state Republican Party.Wal-Mart is not alone:The world's largest corporation, which once had a tradition of trying to stay out of politics, has given more than $2.4 million on California races so far this year - well beyond any previous sum the company has spent here in one year.
And Tuesday, the Bentonville, Ark.-based company announced it would donate an additional $500,000 to the opponents of Proposition 72, a measure that will require employers to provide basic health insurance to workers.
Wal-Mart representatives said the escalation
More than $12.8 million has been raised from opponents of the law, including McDonald's Corp. and Target Corp.That slippery slope..."If it happens in California, it rolls eastward and that will have damaging effects nationwide," said Jot Condie, vice president of the California Restaurant Association, a Sacramento trade group that has given more than $3 million.
Posted by Kevin on October, 27 2004 at 07:11 AM
