It has been long speculated that outgoing Starbucks Chairman Howard Schultz would run for president, but the 40-year coffee veteran isn’t announcing anything yet.
Schultz, 64, is known for his active role in politics, leveraging his position at Starbucks to speak about the role public companies could play in society. During his tenure at the coffee chain, he pushed to give opportunities to veterans and refugees and expanded health benefits and college tuition assistance to workers.
“I’m very sensitive to these issues [and] ensuring the fact that we do the kind of things that restore the promise of the country and our standing around the world,” Schultz said Tuesday on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”
While Schultz has declined to say what his next step will be, his extensive interview touched on a number of issues that could become part of his platform if he decides to run for public office.
Here’s what Schultz had to say on several hot-button issues:
Immigration
“I don’t think we’ve got a very humane [immigration] policy. I think we need border security. But there’s a lot of nontruths. As an example, two-thirds of the undocumented people were talking about are not people that have crossed a border. They’re here because their visa has expired.”
“Ronald Reagan in 1986 passed an immigration bill as a Republican president. So why can’t we come together, move the ideology out, and do what’s in the interest of American people? Seventy percent of the American people want a good immigration policy.”
Trade
“We’re in a trade battle here that I do not understand. Our problem is not China. Our problem is here in the U.S. We have a $21 trillion debt. We’re paying $400 billion of interest. These things are unsustainable.”
“This rhetoric about all these trade wars that are now being engaged with China, with Mexico, with Canada.
By Sarah Whitten for CNBC NEWS
Read Full Article HERE
English
Arabic
Chinese (Simplified)
Dutch
French
German
Italian
Portuguese
Russian
Spanish