Even in the midst of their most massive scandals, companies like Facebook and YouTube have avoided real consequences in part thanks to the sheer amount of cash they rake in. And now, as Washington makes noises about regulation that are growing louder as the 2020 primary gets serious, Silicon Valley is putting all that money to good use. A Washington Post analysis Wednesday found that most of the top tech firms, including Facebook, Amazon, and Apple, spent record amounts on lobbying last year—a reflection of how much they object to proposals rein them in, and the extent to which they’ll fight to keep things as they are.

According to spending disclosures filed with the government this week, Facebook spent nearly $17 million on Washington lobbying in 2019—a 32% hike from the year before. Amazon was a close second, spending a little more than $16 million. Apple spent less last year than its fellow big four tech giants—$7.35 million—but still about 10% more than in 2018. Only Google said it spent less than it did the previous year, but still poured a whopping $12.76 million into lobbying.

The hefty expenditures come as lawmakers, including several Democratic presidential candidates, promise to assert more control over everything from tech companies’ handling of privacy issues to their role in spreading misleading content to alleged anti-trust violations. Elizabeth Warren has been the most vocal in this regard; she has called for big tech companies to be broken up, earning her a shout-out from Mark Zuckerberg, whose public demands for regulation are undercut by his apparent behind-the-scenes overtures to Donald Trump and other conservatives who want him to continue allowing them to spread disinformation. “At the end of the day, if someone’s going to try to threaten something that existential,” the Facebook CEO said in a closed meeting with employees, apparently referring to Warren’s call to break up his company, “you go to the mat and you fight.”

In upping their lobbying efforts, Facebook and other tech firms are signaling they plan to do just that, as even moderate Democrats toughen their stance toward the companies. “I’ve never been a fan of Facebook, as you probably know,” Joe Biden told the New York Times in a recent interview. “I’ve never been a big Zuckerberg fan. I think he’s a real problem.” Even Pete Buttigieg—who has taken donations from big tech and hired at least two campaign staffers Zuckerberg and wife Priscilla Chan have recommended to him—has expressed some discomfort. “No one company and no one person should have the kind of power that they’ve accumulated,” the South Bend mayor said in his Times endorsement interview.

If one of those Democrats lands in the White House, tech companies could find themselves at an inflection point. Which is why, as observers have pointed out, Silicon Valley’s campaign to stay in power is multi-pronged—and potential regulators are bracing themselves for an aggressive influx. “There’s no question the folks making out in the current system, who have a real advantage...they’re going to work hard to preserve that, Democratic Representative David Cicilline, who chairs the House Judiciary antitrust subcommittee, told the Post, “because they’re making a huge amount of money.”

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