The world’s largest coffee chain, Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX), has urged the U.S. public to sign a petition against the government shutdown. Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) CEO Howard Schultz said more than 11,000 coffee shops of the company will become the center of citizen action over the weekend. Mr. Schultz said he was acting as an American citizen, not as a businessman. He decided to take action after realizing that American people absolutely lack a platform to express their frustration over the shutdown.
Starbucks gets support of major corporations
Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) has vowed to share the non-partisan petition with Washington. People can sign the petition at any Starbucks coffee shop. Newspaper ads for the 3-day petition signing have been published Friday in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, USA Today and The Washington Post. People can sign the ads, tear them out and submit them to any Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) store this weekend. They can also sign the petition digitally at ComeTogetherPetition.com.
The Seattle-based company will urge the White House and Congress to reopen the government, pay debts on time and reach a long-term budget deal by the end of this year. Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) CEO Howard Schultz is a registered Democrat. Mr. Schultz said he has also discussed it with the chief executives of at least half of the companies in the 30-company Dow Jones Industrial Average. They all have voiced support.
Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) has increasingly been participating in social and cultural issues. After a spate of shootings in the country, Howard Schultz asked gun owners not to bring guns inside Starbucks stores. A few days ago, the company tried to show politicians how to resolve the gridlock. It ran a “Come Together” campaign where the company offered free coffee to anybody who bought another person a drink at Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) stores.
Mr. Schultz told USA Today in a phone interview that there is a rising level of dysfunction in Washington. He said Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) tries to use its scale for good in every possible way. Mr. Schultz said he has no interest in running for public office.
President Barack Obama had also launched a similar online petition platform in 2011. It was named “We the People.” President Obama guarantees a response to any petition that fetches more than 100,000 signatures in less than a month. However, this platform has gone offline due to the government shutdown.
