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Google executives backed out of a fundraiser for Sen. Mike Lee on Tuesday night after The Wall Street Journal pointed out a day earlier that the Utah Republican announced a probe into why the federal government ended an antitrust investigation into the tech giant.
Lee's campaign team talked to people at Google and both camps agreed that it would look bad for the freshman senator to accept contributions so shortly after he announced his inquiry.
Lee is still appearing at the fundraiser in Palo Alto, Calif., which was organized by TechNet, a high-tech lobbying group. Suggested contributions start at $500. The Journal reported that Google helped plan the event.
Roughly two years ago, federal regulators ended an investigation into Google's practices. Lee, who heads the Senate's antitrust subcommittee, said he wants details on meetings involving the White House, the Federal Trade Commission and Google.
"Out of an abundance of caution, the senator's campaign reached out to Google Monday, and they elected not to attend the event," Emily Long, Lee's spokeswoman, said in a statement to The Journal.