Global Courant 2023-04-16 00:49:42
donald trump jr. defended beer conglomerate Anheuser-Busch on its podcast Thursday, urging listeners not to continue boycotting the company.
Trump claimed the company was too “iconic” to continue boycotting, and that executives have learned a lesson.
“So here’s the deal. Anheuser-Busch is going crazy with this Dylan Mulvaney thing. However, I’m not for destroying an American, an iconic company for something like this,” Trump Jr. said.
BUD LIGHT’S CONTROL VERSION DYLAN MULVANEY ATTRACTS NATIONAL DISTRIBUTORS AS BRANDING GURU THINKS CONSUMERS ARE CONFUSED
A photo of the commemorative can of Bud Light featuring TikTok influencer Dylan Mulvaney. (Dylan Mulvaney/Instagram)
The beer company has faced fierce criticism in recent weeks after announcing it was partnering with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
“When I really look at it, I’m not going to blame the whole company for the inaction or the stupidity of someone in a marketing campaign that was a huge wake-up call,” Trump said of the partnership on Thursday.
Trump cited Anheuser-Busch’s record of donating slightly more to conservative politicians than to liberal politicians as a reason to keep buying their beer.
COUNTRY MUSIC STAR PULLS KNOTS LIGHT OUT OF NASHVILLE BAR BETWEEN DYLAN MULVANEY COOPERATION: ‘THEY DON’T ORDER’
Anheuser-Busch set social media on fire when beer juggernaut Bud Light celebrated transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney’s “365 Days of Girlhood” with a polarizing promotion. (Instagram)
“The company itself doesn’t participate in the same leftist nonsense as the other big conglomerates,” Trump said. “Honestly, they’re not participating in the same waking mess that other people in the beer industry actually do, who are much worse offenders from what I looked at. But if they do this again, it’s on them!”
Mulvaney, a trans activist and social media influencer who rose to prominence when she got the chance to interview President Biden on LGBTQ issues in 2022, revealed earlier this month that the beer company sent packages of Bud Light with her face printed on the cans as part of its an ad for the beer company’s March Madness contest and as a way to celebrate a full year of “girlhood.”
Brendan Whitworth, CEO of Anheuser-Busch, released an extensive statement Friday, hoping to temper animosity against Bud Light and its parent company.
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donald trump jr. addresses audience at a campaign rally at Illuminating Technologies in Greensboro, North Carolina. (Melissa Sue Gerrits/Getty Images)
“It was never our intention to be part of a discussion that divides people. Our job is to bring people together over a beer,” said Whitworth. “My time in this country has taught me the importance of accountability and the values on which America is founded: freedom, hard work and respect for each other.
He added, “As CEO of Anheuser-Busch, I am focused on building and protecting our remarkable history and heritage.”
The statement drew criticism from both sides of the transgender issue, with social media users asking what the message should be.
Timothy Nerozzi is a writer for Fox News Digital. You can follow him on Twitter @timothynerozzi and email him at timothy.nerozzi@fox.com
