Wal-Mart’s official company position on politics is bipartisan, but glimpses into Wal-Mart’s corporate culture reveal this is far from true. Daily Kos diarist Arkydem wrote a post today about a party his adult daughter attended in northwest Arkansas hosted by two Wal-Mart executives. From the sound of it, Wal-Mart’s executive corps is made up entirely of the insensitive meatheads you hated in high school, but instead of teasing you about your lame off-brand sneakers, now they tease you about not being a Republican. Says Arkydem:

I live in the Republican stronghold of Arkansas, the northwest corner. The home of over 7,000 Wal-Mart employees and since early 2002 when Wal-Mart made the announcement that if you’re a vendor, you set up shop here, adding another 30-40K folks and a sea of vendor offices all over the county, all carrying the misinformation and hate that corporate Wal-Mart spreads through its ranks and its vendor slaves about Democrats and about a million other things.

Wal-Mart strives to be seen as a politically neutral company for several reasons. The politics of Wal-Mart have never been positive for the company: low wages, poor benefits and other stingy practices have dogged the retailer for years, and have damaged its reputation. The farther the company can distance itself from these issues, the better. But Wal-Mart is also desperate to break in to several predominantly Democrat markets, and aligning with Republican values never helps this cause. Stories like Arkydem’s present a real problem for Wal-Mart, and seriously hamper its attempts to woo Democrats. Stories like this one don’t help much either, but no one said the company was interested in actually changing its practices to achieve change.

They Attacked our Daughter [Daily Kos]
Wal-Mart on the attack [Arkansas Times]

Last month, the Wall Street Journal exposed the fact that Wal-Mart was telling its employees to vote against the Democrats in November - fearful that a Democrat in the White House would pass legislation making it easier for workers to unionize. Today, an op-ed by Congressman Rahm Emanuel in the Wall Street Journal suggests that Wal-Mart’s potentially illegal activities may even be misguided. Emanuel suggests that Wal-Mart is ignoring the economic facts in advocating for Republicans, and has actually fared better under a Democratic administration. 

The piece explains that the American middle class - Wal-Mart’s core demographic - has always done better under Democrat administrations. Supporting measures that bolster the working class - such as the Employee Free Choice Act, which the company warned against - would mean better living for Wal-Mart’s employees AND its shareholders. Such support might mean thinking outside the box for this notoriously Republican company, but Wal-Mart stands only to gain from such innovations.

Opinion: Wal-Mart Thrives When Democrats Are in Charge [Wall Street Journal]

Last month, reports surfaced indicating that Wal-Mart managers and department heads were holding meetings with associates and warning of dire consequences if Barack Obama is elected president.

Wal-Mart may have its political reasons to vote Republican, but if economics are the criteria, Wal-Mart should be rooting for a Democratic administration. Instead, the company whose television ads encourage you to save money and live better is ignoring the economic facts and backing Republican economic policies that have resulted in families losing money and living worse.

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