Hillary Clinton blasted the merger of pharmaceutical giants Pfizer and Allergan Monday, despite the fact that Pfizer is a longtime supporter of Clinton causes.
“For too long, powerful corporations have exploited loopholes that allow them to hide earnings abroad to lower their taxes. Now Pfizer is trying to reduce its tax bill even further,” Clinton said Monday after the company confirmed rumors that it was merging with Allergan to create a “corporate inversion.”
However, Pfizer has donated heavily to the Clinton Foundation, giving between $1 million and $5 million to the charity, according to donor records. Contributions to the Clinton Foundation are tax deductible.
Pfizer executives donated $39,375 directly to Clinton’s presidential campaign between April and the end of September, according to Federal Election Commission records.
What’s more, one of Pfizer’s top lobbying firms, Akin Gump, is one of Clinton’s top 10 campaign donors, the Center for Responsive Politics found.
The pharmaceutical company also helped fund a political project Clinton spearheaded while at the State Department. Pfizer was a top sponsor of the U.S. pavilion at the 2010 World’s Fair in Shanghai, a $60 million government project paid for by corporations from Clinton’s vast donor network.
