Home Depot Founder Bernie Marcus Claps Back At People Who Threaten To Boycott Over His Support Of Donald Trump
Home Depot billionaire Bernie Marcus had harsh words for critics who are calling for a boycott of the retailer over his support of Donald Trump, Yahoo News reports.
Earlier this week, as reported by The Inquisitr, it came out that the 90-year-old businessman plans to donate to Donald Trump’s 2020 re-election bid. Speaking to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Marcus said that he doesn’t agree with “every move” of the Trump administration, but in the main, he supports the 45th president. Specifically, he said that he thought Trump’s China tariffs boosted the economy, and that he believed Trump’s no-nonsense approach to emerging threats from China and North Korea help to neutralize those threats.
Once that news went public, threats of a boycott of Home Depot started being raised. Some even publicly cut up their Home Depot credit cards.
In a statement posted to Facebook on Wednesday, Marcus shot back at those who are calling for a boycott of the retailer. He made three key points, which are outlined below.
He Has Not Been Affiliated With Home Depot For 20 Years
Marcus noted, first of all, that any ire towards the Home Depot chain over its founder’s use of his own money is misplaced. As Marcus noted, he has not been affiliated with the company since 2002. “[Home Depot is] the company that I retired from in 2002 and have not had a business relationship with in almost 20 years,” he wrote. He also noted that Home Depot employs hundreds of thousands of people, from all political affiliations. Boycotting the company hurts them, not Marcus, he wrote.
.@Lowes it is ? Home Depot boycotts ensue after its CEO announced his plan to endorse Trump for 2020 #BoycottHomeDepot https://t.co/iWA4TGrx9q pic.twitter.com/amJGwurPmk
— Blavity (@Blavity) July 10, 2019
His Charitable Foundation Helps Many People
Marcus also noted that his money, via his foundation, has been used for altruistic means, such as supporting “autism, medical research, education, heart and neurological issues like stroke, and to help our veterans.”
He Should Be Allowed To Speak His Mind
Finally, Marcus suggested that the reaction to his statements of support for Trump are in-line with what would happen in a repressive dictatorship.
“Am I in China? Argentina? Russia? That’s what it feels like to me. It saddens me that our country has come to this, where I, as a private citizen, cannot express my feelings,” he wrote.
He concluded by saying that he will not be silenced, and that if he lives another 10 years, he will use that time to “accomplish more to save this world than my critics will do even if they had forty lifetimes.”
