The (Real) Steal: Valero Is One of the Biggest Donors to “Big Lie” Politicians

“5th Street, Exxon Benicia Refinery, CA” by Dave MacKenzie is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0

When you hear that Valero Energy is among the top five donors to members of Congress that support the “Big Lie,” you might think, eh, it’s probably a coincidence, because all of those Republicans tend to support the interests of Big Energy.

But what if told you that Valero— which has a huge refinery in Benicia— had initially pledged after January 6, 2021, to stop or pause its political giving to members of Congress that objected to the results of the election or spurred the insurrection?

According to an article published on the Citizens for Ethics site (CREW), Valero “pledged to pause donations and re-evaluate their giving criteria” in the wake of Jan. 6. Since then, Valero, along with Ford and Aflac, have given more than $300,000 to politicians who continued to propagate the Big Lie that Trump actually won the election or who spurred on the Jan 6. revolt. Unsurprisingly, these law makers do indeed sit on committees that affect the oil biz. These are names like Louie Gohmert, Madison Cawthorn, and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.

According to CREW, McCarthy rakes in the biggest donations, to the tune of $688,000 from 105 corporate and industry donors, including Valero.

The top five corporate donors to those that objected to the election results are Boeing, Koch, American Crystal Sugar, General Dynamics, and Valero.

According to CNN, Valero “indefinitely” suspended all donations to Big Lie politicians after Jan. 6, releasing the following statement:

In the wake of the tragic events that unfolded in Washington, D.C. last week, Valero is pausing all political contributions and has no plans to resume them over the next few months. We will continue to evaluate future contributions to assure they serve the best interest and values of our employees, shareholders, and the communities where we operate.”

“Indefinitely” became very definite when Valero resumed funneling cash to 17 Big Lie politicians last June, to the tune of $207,500. CREW reports that top recipients have been Richard Hudson and Steve Scalise, both denizens of the Energy and Commerce Committee.

Lest ye think that all corporations that vowed to rethink their giving after Jan. 6 most have reneged on their promise, of the 250 that did so, half have halted all donations to lawmakers and leaders who prop up the Big Lie. In case you are curious, according to CREW, they are Hallmark, Charles Schwab, and Hewlett Packard. Hallmark even asked Josh Hawley and Roger Marshall to give them their money back. Marshall was one of the senators to vote against certifying the election, and Hawley was too, with a huge heap of hubris to go with it. 70 percent of Republican House members voted not to certify.

But wait, there’s more. Valero has also contributed to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton after he lead the fight to redraw voting districts in his state to Jim Crow levels. Paxton also lead the charge against the presidential election results by using his power as Texas attorney general to file a lawsuit.

Valero is the largest employer in Benicia and regularly makes philanthropic donations there— as well as donations to local political races, regardless of whether or not the candidate even wants it. Benicia is, however, comprised mostly of Democrats.

Looming over them, quite literally, is the Valero refinery.

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