Google CEO Schmidt '76 to join Obama campaign

Google CEO Eric Schmidt ’76 will join presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) on the campaign trail, making his debut at a panel discussion on the economy today in Florida.

Schmidt has advised the campaign on technology and energy issues, supporting policies to improve technology in society, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Though Google has a vested interest in issues being discussed in Congress, Schmidt told the Journal that he is supporting Obama in a personal capacity and that “Google is officially neutral.”

On Capitol Hill, congressmen are discussing measures that would limit companies’ abilities to target specific consumers through online advertisements. They are considering rules that would allow telecommunications providers to vary prices according to the level of internet service. If passed, such legislation would negatively impact Google, according to the Journal.

The Department of Justice is investigating Google and its recently finalized ad-sharing agreement with Yahoo. The agreement could give Google too large a share of the search-advertising market and raise consumer prices.

It isn’t clear if Google and Obama see eye to eye on issues important to the company, though they are both against internet-service providers charging consumers based on internet-service levels, the Journal reported. Obama supported this measure before Schmidt began advising him.

According to the Journal, Google employees had contributed $487,355 to Obama’s campaign and $20,600 to the campaign of Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) as of Aug. 31. Schmidt hasn’t donated to either.

Though tech and media executives speculate that Schmidt may have his eye on Obama’s proposed chief technology officer post, Schmidt told the Journal he’s “actually very busy running Google.”