Gap CEO Urged to Exit ‘Hyper-Partisan’ Business Lobby

Gap CEO Urged to Exit 'Hyper-Partisan' Business Lobby
Kali Hays
The Gap is facing pressure from dozens of activist non-profit groups to part ways with the "hyper-partisan" lobbying group the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. In a letter sent to Gap Inc. chief executive officer Art Peck, 55 groups, including Public Citizen, Sierra Club and Economic Policy Institute, asked that the global retailer leave the Chamber, a pro-business lobbying group that almost exclusively supports Republican political candidates and causes. The groups pointed out several efforts by Gap to fight climate change, like a commitment to sustainable fibers and cutting greenhouse gas emissions in line with the Paris Agreement, but said the Chamber is "doing everything it can" to undermine such work. "[The Chamber] opposes the Paris Agreement that you publicly support, is suing to block the implementation of the Clean Power Plan, consistently lobbies against legislation aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions and spends millions of dollars in money on elections ads urging voters to back candidates who support the fossil fuel industry and oppose efforts to combat climate change," the groups said in the letter to Peck. Beyond its work against various actions combating climate change, the Chamber has also become a "highly partisan political organization," according to the letter, which pointed to the

Follow WWD on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook.