United States Chamber of Commerce

The United States Chamber of Commerce (USCC) is a business association advocacy group and is the largest lobbying group in the United States. The group was founded in April 23, 1912, out of local chambers of commerce at the urging of President William Howard Taft and his Secretary of Commerce and Labor Charles Nagel. President Taft's belief was that the "government needed to deal with a group that could speak with authority for the interests of business."

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce claims to represent three million small business owners, but this claim is disputed because the organization is funded primarily by the largest corporations in the United States.

The current president and CEO of the Chamber is Suzanne Clark. She worked for the group from 1997 to 2007 and returned in 2014, holding multiple executive roles before being named its first female CEO in February 2021.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce was founded at a meeting of over 700 delegates at the Willard Hotel in Washington, D.C., on April 23, 1912. Harry A. Wheeler was elected the organization's first president. Its first vice presidents were attorney and civic leader Joseph Nathan Teal, business tycoon and founder of the Coca-Cola Company Asa Griggs Candler, and business tycoon Arthur Briggs Farquhar. Its first treasurer was attorney and Civil War veteran John Joy Edson.

An important catalyst for the creation of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce were two prior business engagements between the U.S. and Japan. In 1908, Japanese business magnate Eiichi Shibusawa invited the first official, modern day U.S. business delegation to visit Japan. This delegation was led by the prominent banker/economist Frank A. Vanderlip accompanied by sixty business representatives from the West coast states of California, Oregon, and Washington. The goal was to bridge their nations diplomatically and to promote increased business and commerce.

In 1909, in appreciation for the hospitality shown to the 1908 Vanderlip business delegation during their visit to Japan, an invitation was now sent to Japanese business leaders to tour the U.S. This invitation came from the Associated Chambers of Commerce of the Pacific Coast, whose membership included eight principal cities from western coastal states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Their invitation was accepted by the Japanese, and in 1909, Shibusawa, accompanied by his delegation of over fifty of Japan's most prominent business leaders and notables spent three months visiting 53 cities across America.

Their travels were highlighted in many newspapers as they journeyed in a specially outfitted 'Million Dollar Train', provided by the American industrial community. The U.S. government recognized the significance of their visit, it and sent U.S. representatives to accompany and assist them during their trip. Six representatives of the Associated Chambers of Commerce of the Pacific Coast also accompanied them in order to help facilitate the events along the way.

Their meetings included many chambers of commerce, tours of factories, power plants, fire departments, port facilities, mines, farms, schools, universities, libraries, theaters, churches, hospitals, and many other facilities. Their main goals to develop friendship and familiarity between the two nations while encouraging bilateral trade and commerce. An important influence of their visit was that it connected chambers of commerce across U.S., which likely motivated them to recognize the benefits of becoming a national organization. President Taft was one of the U.S. leaders that Shibusawa and his delegates met with during their visit.