Well, this one is a bit of a head-scratcher. Donald Trump Jr. took to Rumble on Saturday and told conservatives they should stop boycotting Bud Light.
That came amid declining sales of the beer following a self-inflicted controversy involving transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney. The company made a commemorative can celebrating Mulvaney’s self-proclaimed “365th day of girlhood” (because he’s a man who pretends to be a pre-teen girl, not just a woman), and made him some sort of brand ambassador.
With tolerance on the right for corporate political activism greatly diminishing over the last several years, the reaction was swift. It certainly didn’t help Bud Light that most of its customer base isn’t made up of far-left archetypes.
Given that, the call by Don Jr. came as a surprise. Why is he going to bat for Bud Light (Newsmax)?
Tone deaf company alienates its base, Don Jr. "Hold my Bud Light." pic.twitter.com/Na2Jk98pV7
— RevengeoftheMeek (@MeeksRevenge) April 14, 2023
During his Thursday “Triggered with Donald Trump Jr.” podcast, the younger Trump called on his audience to leave beer maker Anheuser-Busch “alone” after conservatives began boycotting the company for its promotion of transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney in a video ad for Bud Light.
“I think sometimes we do have the tendency of like shooting first and aiming second, not looking into the details … I get that guys,” Trump Jr. said during the episode, posted on Mediaite. “It’s easy. I’ve complained about that on this show before, which is when we do the, Hey, we got you, and you know — Wuhan lab leak theory, COVID vaccines, whatever, it’s like two years later we’re proven, right? And we dunk on them online, but they still won.
“This is like the opposite of that. This is one like we’re dunking on them now, but when you actually look into it, they’d be one of the more conservative-leaning companies in America.”
Here’s what he had to say about Anheuser-Busch’s political giving (The New York Post).
“We looked into the political giving and lobbying history of Anheuser-Busch. And guess what? They actually support Republicans,” said the former first son on Rumble.
“Last cycle their employees and their PAC gave about 60 percent to Republicans and 40 percent to Democrats. That’s literally almost unheard of in corporate America, where it’s really easy to go woke, where they do so constantly, where there’s a consequence to actually being a conservative. So 60/40 to the conservative side is kind of a big deal.”
I’ve had several good interactions with Don Jr. throughout the years so my intention isn’t to tear him down personally. I just think he’s flat-out wrong, and I’m not sure what the motivation is. He says that Bud Light doesn’t participate in the same woke nonsense as other beer companies, but what’s more woke than spitting on your customer base to promote Dylan Mulvaney, the person who stands at the tip of the spear of the radical trans agenda?
This wasn’t some small snafu by Bud Light, and by virtue, Anheuser-Busch. The company made one of the most divisive figures in the country a brand ambassador, doubled down, and then only delivered a tepid walk-back. No one has been fired, and nowhere has a direct admission of a mistake been made.
I’d say that the point about Anheuser-Busch’s political giving only reinforces that the boycott is just. If conservatives can’t keep companies that generally agree with them in line, then what hope is there within the broader business environment? A message is being sent here, and it’s one that needs to be followed through on.
Also, hasn’t the message from the Trump camp been that being beholden to donors is a bad thing? The fact that Anheuser-Busch has given to Republicans shouldn’t buy them immunity. It should play no role at all if one is truly sincere about not giving donors undue influence.
Naturally, the backlash to Don Jr.’s words was swift. The memes came out of the woodwork and even many very pro-Trump social media accounts expressed their displeasure.
https://t.co/Mfv6UA4UM5 pic.twitter.com/pEH2mJfpt7
— Prison Mitch (@MidnightMitch) April 15, 2023
https://t.co/Ya6i2snWPo pic.twitter.com/PjJO2jsTMK
— Mrs. Brassenstein (@MBrassenstein) April 15, 2023
I think this was a miscalculation, both politically and principally. The moment you take your foot off the gas against these woke corporations, they will demolish conservatives. And the fact that Anheuser-Busch gives money to Republicans should be irrelevant because being controlled by donors isn’t a good thing anyway.
Long story short, keep the pressure on.
