Carly Fiorina Rips Tim Cook For Two-Faced Gay Rights Stance

According to Carly Fiorina, the former CEO of Hewlett-Packard, Tim Cook protests for gay rights issues in the U.S. but never makes a peep in other countries his company deals with, especially in countries where homosexuality is strictly banned. Fiorina considers that a bit hypocritical.

In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Carly Fiorina explained that Tim Cook and other big Silicon Valley tech leaders were engaged in “a level of hypocrisy here that really is unfortunate.”

“When Tim Cook is upset about all the places that he does business because of the way they treat gays and women, he needs to withdraw from 90% of the markets that he’s in, including China and Saudi Arabia. But I don’t hear him being upset about that.”

Fiorina’s argument runs counter to some right-wing critics who blast liberal philanthropists for fixing problems abroad before doing so at home. The attack fits well with the former CEO’s style, swimming against the tech community’s tide.

As previously reported by the Inquisitr, Tim Cook isn’t the only tech boss speaking out against the Indiana Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), and the combined force of Silicon Valley and others seems to have had an effect on Governor Mike Pence. Fiorina, however, doesn’t see anything wrong with the act.

“I think this is a ginned-up controversy by people who play identity politics that has divided the nation in a way that is really unhelpful.”

Her strong language on this issue is likely a preparation for her potential 2016 presidential run. Positioning herself as a social conservative, Carly Fiorina has spoken out against abortion rights and restrictions to religious freedoms. Her platform also includes rolling-back a number of regulations and cutting federal income taxes.

Fiorina’s work on social issues might help mitigate likely criticism of her time at HP. During her tenure there from 1999 to 2005, the company lost roughly half of its value. Fiorina laid off thousands of employees while paying herself handsome perks and salary bonuses.

She was declared one of the worst CEOs of all time by CNBC after receiving a $20 million severance package to leave HP.

Tim Cook might receive a similar critique if he listens to Carly Fiorina’s advice.

In the meantime, Governor Pence has introduced language to prevent the RFRA from being used to discriminate against the LGBT community, but critics still say the law doesn’t go far enough to protect people, according to the Atlantic. This means the battle might be far from over.

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