The idea of forming a national organization to represent the unified interests of U.S. business first took shape under the presidency of William Howard Taft. On April 12, 1912, his vision for the organization became a reality when a group of 700 delegates from various commercial and trade organizations came together to form the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to represent business interests at the national level. More than 90 years later, the Chamber has grown to include more than 3 million business organizations, 2,800 state and local chambers, 830 associations, and 102 American Chambers of Commerce abroad.

The U.S. Chamber focuses on national issues at the federal level that affect business interests. The Chamber tries to influence these issues through lobbying or talking with government leaders, ...