Bloomberg Opinion’s Post

Transcript

Robbie Starbuck is back. You know, the conservative activist who pushed big companies like Harley-Davidson, John Deere and Tractor Supply to drop their DI efforts? Well, he's given himself another win, and it's a big one. Walmart is rolling back some of its diversity policies. But I've been covering this fight and Starbuck for a long time, and I'm here to tell you something is different with this one. So here's what we know. Last week, Starbucks said that he contacted Walmart about its diversity efforts and threatened to boycott. Smart agreed to engage with him, and Starbucks said that the frank conversations the two parties had were critical. Starbuck was the one who broke the news of Walmart's reversal of its DI efforts. And what did Walmart say? Not a whole lot, but it did confirm some of the changes when reporters started calling. Starbucks crusade to eradicate wokeness from corporate America has followed a similar pattern. First, he targets a company with a conservative customer base, like Harley-Davidson or Tractor Supply. Then he exposes them, threatens to boycott, and hounds them on social media. But there was number public campaign against Walmart, even as Starbuck talked with the company privately. And unlike his other targets, Walmart's customer base also doesn't necessarily lean clearly left or right. But you know who does? Trump and his incoming administration. That's why Walmarts rollback looks less like a Starbucks story and more like a Trump one. Businesses across the US are preparing for an administration that will go after any company it deems woke and fairly or not, that will cost companies money. The question for corporate America is how to. Handle the next four years, Walmart's first try at that. Letting conservative activists like Starbuck drive the narrative was cowardly, and it sets a dangerous example for other companies. Walmart is perfectly capable of standing up to bullies like Starbuck. It just didn't want to in this political climate.