Starbucks CEO takes aim at D.C. again
p o l i t i c o
By Reid J. Epstein
September 6, 2011
Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz continued his rhetorical war against Washington gridlock Tuesday during a conference call and webcast castigating the White House and Congress for the nation’s deficit and unemployment rate.
In a conference call that was heavy on angry us-against-Washington rhetoric and deficit and unemployment statistics and light on policy proposals, Schultz reiterated his call for the federal government to immediately work to reduce both the deficit and unemployment.
At various points during the call, <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffff00">Schultz called on Washington politicians to work across party lines, reduce the corporate income tax rate for companies that create jobs and focus on policy without regard to reelection</span>.
“We have serious problems and we need serious people to lead us,” he said. “I think today we need to elect leaders that won’t be pinned down by pledges but instead will use their best judgment to go Washington and analyze the facts.”
Asked specifically what policy action he would propose to address the deficit and unemployment situations, Schultz decried the existence of the deficit reduction supercommittee and corporate lobbyists seeking to woo its members.
He did not offer any proposals.
“I’m not a politician,” he said. “I’m not an economist. I run a coffee company.”
He continued: “My view of this is the following: I hope the supercommittee really does exceed expectations. My own expectations are not that high. … We have a Congress that is there to do a job. How did we get to a supercommittee? I just don’t understand it.”
Call for an Apolitical Approach
Schultz’s foray into Howard Beale-style politics began last month when he circulated a letter asking fellow CEOs not to make political contributions until the White House and Congress “deliver a fiscally disciplined long-term debt and deficit plan to the American people.”
Tuesday night he reiterated his <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffff00">call for an apolitical approach for solving the nation’s problems</SPAN>. Seemingly ignoring two centuries of political history, Schultz called <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffff00">for members of Congress and President Barack Obama to make decisions without regard of their respective reelection chances</span>.
“We’re so hungry right now for leadership, we’re so hungry for solutions, that if Congress and the administration demonstrated a unified approach for solving these problems, <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffff00">the country would embrace it like a tidal wave</span>,” he said.
The Schultz call was sponsored by No Labels, the group launched by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and Upward Spiral, the group Schultz launched this summer.
Despite Schultz’s call for members of Congress to skip pledges on particular issues, the front page of the Upward Spiral website calls for supporters to make <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffff00">two pledges:</span> one to <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffff00">withhold political donations</span> and another to <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffff00">hire out-of-work Americans</span>.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0911/62776.html
