Amazon- Just a Tech Giant Or a Lobbying Monster?

[Stormysaga + 62]

Once just the online bookstore, Amazon today is a tech giant and the world's largest online marketplace that has become deeply entwined with the federal government.  This company is spending millions to build a base in Washington. Amazon now has an army of nearly 100 lobbyists at more than a dozen lobbying firms working on a list of issues including taxes, trade and, more recently, food stamps. 

 

 

[BlackTortoise + 103]

Still not the biggest lobbying army in Washington. 

 

[Adam Varga + 123]

Bezos owns the Washington Post to push his agenda while pretending objectivity. This lobbying lasts for a while. But he surely had a hard time in lobbying with Trump on his back. 

[Vlad Kovalenko + 115]

Power breeds corruption. Corruption breeds more corrupted ties. Nothing new.

[HermitMunster + 146]

Anyone who thinks that HQ2 will be anywhere other than the Washington D.C. area is fooling themselves. There are three possible sites in the D.C. area and they will choose one of them. I have no doubts about this.

Yes, Bezos is definitely trying to curry favor in Washington, and he sure is doing a better job of it than say his contemporaries Zuckerberg and Musk. People have to understand though that Amazon's #1 goal is automation, and they won't be bringing 50,000 jobs to their HQ2 in the long run.

[CMOP + 227]

[HermitMunster + 146]

6 minutes ago, CMOP said:

I'm quite cetain Bezos is really Mr. Kruger from Seinfeld.

[John Foote + 1,135]

In the US political system, major players have to spend on lobbying. This is chump change compared to what some industries, and countries, spend lobbying. I still grieve at the Supreme Court decision allowing corporations essentially unlimited political spending on campaigns. The tech sector is, relatively speaking, late to this game, at this level. Look at the money spent on campaigns today.