More companies pause contributions to Hawley, others

O'FALLON, Mo. (AP) — Several more companies have suspended campaign contributions to Sen. Josh Hawley in the wake of last week’s attack at the U.S. Capitol, and a political action committee of Republicans opposed to President Donald Trump is pressuring remaining Missouri donors to abandon the GOP senator.

The health care IT firm Cerner Corp. based in Kansas City, Missouri, said Tuesday that it will suspend contributions “to any candidate or official who took part in or incited violence last week in Washington, D.C.” Spokeswoman Misti Preston said the company isn't “naming specific names,” but Cerner's political action committee has donated $10,000 to a Hawley-sponsored PAC over the past two years.

Late Monday, two St. Louis-based companies — the utility Ameren Corp. and the financial firm Edward Jones — said they were suspending campaign contributions. The Chicago-based law firm Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner also announced a halt, at least temporarily, to political contributions. The firm is based in Chicago but is among the largest in St. Louis.

Ameren, Edward Jones and the law firm have contributed to Hawley, who was a leader of efforts to challenge the 2020 presidential election results and voted to question the Electoral College count, even after a mob of Trump’s supporters broke into the Capitol on Jan 6.

Several prominent Missouri Republicans have distanced themselves from Hawley since the riot, including former Sen. John Danforth and major GOP donors Sam Fox and businessman David Humphreys.

Hallmark Cards, based in Kansas City, went even further, saying on Monday it wanted Hawley and Republican Sen. Roger Marshall of Kansas to return employee campaign donations. The company said its employees donated $7,000 to Hawley and $5,000 to Marshall...