Few can accuse Google's top executives of holding a grudge. Despite facing a possible antitrust lawsuit from the Obama administration's Federal Trade Commission, Google's leaders are still backing the president when it comes to donations for his reelection effort.
Leading the way is Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt, who served as an adviser to then-Sen. Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign and is now a member of the President's Council of Advisers on Science and Technology. Schmidt has given $5,000 to the Obama reelection campaign and an additional $30,800 to the Obama Victory Fund, the joint fundraising committee for Obama and the Democratic National Committee, according to Federal Election Commission records.
Schmidt's support was matched by Google cofounder Sergey Brin and Chief Legal Officer and Senior Vice President David Drummond, both of whom gave $5,000 to Obama and $30,800 to the Obama Victory Fund.
In the company's Washington office, Vint Cerf, Google vice president and chief Internet evangelist, who was a pioneer in the development of the Internet, has given $5,000 to Obama and $17,900 to the Obama Victory Fund.
Other Obama contributors from Google in the Washington area include State Policy Counsel John Burchett, who has given $2,000; as well as Global Ethics and Compliance Counsel Amol Naik, Privacy Policy Counsel David Lieber, and Jordan Bookey, manager of K-12 talent and outreach, who each gave $500.
In all, Obama has received more than $737,000 from Google-related donors—the president's third biggest contributor, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Microsoft-related contributors are the second biggest donors to Obama, giving more than $761,000, according to the center's data.
Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney does have some Google backers too. In the Washington office, Romney donors include lobbyist Lee Dunn, who has given the GOP contender $1,000, and Mary Joy Pizzella, a senior business development executive, who has donated $2,750.
The FTC is currently investigating allegations that Google is engaging in anticompetitive behavior by favoring its own products and services in its search results. During an appearance on Bloomberg TV's Capital Gains show, which aired on Sunday, FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz said the agency is aiming to finish its Google probe by the end of the year but would not comment on reports that FTC staff has recommended that the commission sue the company for antitrust violations.
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