Google turns right: Liberal tech giant in 'bipartisan phase' as it starts donating to Republicans



California tech giant recruits Republican operatives

Giving money to GOP groups and co-sponsored debate

Senator says it's trying to get friendly with both sides



It’s long been the left-leaning search engine that believed in supporting the Democrats and ignoring the right-wingers.

But now Google is entering a 'bipartisan phase' as it recruits Republican operatives and donates to GOP groups, reported the Huffington Post.

It has given money to the Republican Attorneys General Association and co-sponsored a GOP presidential debate with Fox News last week.

CEO Eric Schmidt: Google is entering a bipartisan phase as it recruits Republican operatives and donates to GOP groups, reported the Huffington Post

Google has also donated to other GOP groups such as the Republican Governors Association and the Republican State Leadership Committee.

‘Bipartisanship is a positive thing,’ said Senator John Cornyn of Texas, who heads up the Senate GOP's fundraising arm.

‘I understand why people feel like they need to have people they can talk to on both sides,’ he told the Huffington Post.

This newfound GOP support comes as Google faces major anti-trust allegations and had a hugely-anticipated Senate hearing last week.



Donations: Google has given cash to GOP groups such as the Republican Governors Association and the Republican State Leadership Committee

It is also financially supporting conservative think tanks such as the American Enterprise Institute and the Competitive Enterprise Institute.

'Bipartisanship is a positive thing. I understand why people feel like they need to have people they can talk to on both sides' Senator John Cornyn of Texas

Google is keen for more political influence like its bitter rival Microsoft, who played a big part in raising anti-trust concerns against the search engine.

Both firms spent $3.5million each on lobbying in the first half of 2011, reported the Huffington Post.



Google now handles around nine in ten of all searches globally.

The firm is based in Mountain View, California, and was founded in 1998 by Stanford University graduate students Larry Page and Sergey Brin.