(Chris Parker, Headline USA) The CEO of the traditionally left-leaning Starbucks coffee chain is now attacking leftist policies after crime surges have forced store closures.
Howard Schultz condemned policies in far-left metropolitan cities, including Portland, Washington D.C., Philadelphia, Seattle, and Los Angeles, that have led to a significant increase in crime.
“It has shocked me that one of the primary concerns that our retail partners have is their own personal safety,” Schultz said during an internal meeting. “And then we heard the stories that go along with it about what happens in our bathrooms, the issue of mental illness, the issue of homelessness, and the issue of crime.”
However, Schultz is having a change of heart since closing over a dozen stores that are “not unprofitable.”
Some of those stores were located in Seattle, Starbucks’ hometown. The city’s mayor recently requested $2 million of funding for police just two years after supporting the “Defund the Police” movement.
In 2019, Schultz admitted that he used to be a Democrat but no longer affiliates with the party, “who’s so far left.” He also considered running for president as an independent that year.
However, his company has continued to support left-leaning causes.
Starbucks has publicly supported the pro-Marxist Black Lives Matter movement both financially and in marketing campaigns. The company even refused to release records of how much BLM rioters cost its stores in losses.
The company also supported a vaccine requirement or testing requirement for all employees, which they would have to cover themselves. They soon backed down from that mandate after the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down Biden’s national mandate.
However, Starbucks did stand up to leftist activists after far-left employees tried to unionize in New York.
Schultz blamed government leaders at every level.
“At the local, state, and federal level, these governments across the country, and leaders—mayors and governors, city councils—have abdicated their responsibility in fighting crime and addressing mental illness,” he said.
