An interview on 60 minutes and a Twitter statement confirmed on Sunday the months-long rumors of a potential Presidential run by Howard Schultz. If he runs, however, it is not planned to be as one name amidst a crowded Democrat field, but rather as an independent candidate.
Schultz has been suspected of intending a Presidential run for months. His retirement as CEO in early June of 2018, followed immediately by his public repudiation of many of the fiscal policies common to contemporary Democrat platforms, fueled the rumors which had begun during the time of the Philadelphia Starbucks managerial racism controversy.
Investor’s Business Daily ran an opinion piece examining the possibility on June 7. They concluded he had destroyed his chances for the Presidency by speaking out against aggressively socialist policies, and quoted a number of prominent media sites to reach their conclusion:
Schultz might have been able to take a small shop in Seattle and turn it into a global coffee behemoth. But we seriously doubt he’ll have any luck pulling the Democratic Party back from its leftward lurch.
Investor’s Business Daily
Subsequently, Schultz decided not to run as a Democrat-affiliated candidate.
Schultz is being pressed by activists within the Democrat party to not run. The stated concern is that, if a viable alternative is presented to both the Democrats and Trump, enough of a vote could bleed from the Democrats to eliminate their virtually guaranteed victory and could, instead, keep Donald Trump in the Presidency for another four years.
Or, with more than 100 re-tweets, this thoughtful argument:
Schultz, as an actual billionaire with tangible liquid assets, has the resources to fund an independent bid. His greatest hurdle, judging by the comments on his Twitter feed, will be to get his potential run considered on its own merits rather than as a potential vote split away from Democrats.
The “binary option” argument, that only Republicans can beat Democrats and vice versa, has been a useful fiction to keep both parties ensconced in power without needing to acknowledge viewpoints which are held by majorities of citizens. Senators and Governors have been successful while running as neither (D) nor (R), a President could be as well.
