Companies Bail Out On GOP Convention After Facing Pressure

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Donald Trump has promised to liven up this year's Republican National Convention. But some of America's biggest corporations are bailing on the party.

Apple recently became the latest company to give the GOP's presumptive nominee the cold shoulder; it won't contribute money or products to the Republicans' big shindig in Cleveland this month. HP Inc. is also withholding support, while Microsoft is giving products only, not cash. Beyond the tech industry, Ford, JPMorgan Chase and United Parcel Service have opted to withhold support.

Most of these companies are also taking a pass on donating to the 2016 Democratic convention. In previous election cycles, though, several of them have given Republican organizers more - sometimes far more - in cash or donated products than they have the Democrats, making their pullback from the Republican gathering this year more dramatic.

WHY COMPANIES ARE UNEASY

The reasons aren't completely clear. None of these companies publicly described its decisions as a repudiation of Trump. Several declined to discuss their thinking, while others said their sponsorship plans were decided months before Trump emerged as the front-runner for the GOP nomination.

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