Trump says he'd be "very much in favor" if people didn't want to buy from Goodyear
President Trump said Wednesday he supports the idea of a boycott of Goodyear Tires, after he saw a report that said that the company was preventing employees from wearing his signature MAGA hats or "Blue Lives Matter" attire, but allowing clothing that bears messages supporting "Black Lives Matter" and LGBTQ pride.
"I would be very much in favor if people don't want to buy there," Mr. Trump told reporters at a White House briefing Wednesday, adding, "I think it's disgraceful that they did this."
Asked whether he'd be willing to swap out the Goodyear tires on the presidential limousine, Mr. Trump responded, "Yeah, I would do that. I would, I would swap them out, based on what I heard. We'll see what happens. Look. you're going to have a lot of people not wanting to buy that product anymore. And they'll buy from a competitor, made in the USA, okay?"
In promoting a boycott of Goodyear, the president is attacking an American company, based in Akron, Ohio. It's the largest tire company in the U.S. and the third largest in the world, employing 63,000 people.
Earlier in the day, the president had tweeted, "Don't buy GOODYEAR TIRES - They announced a BAN ON MAGA HATS. Get better tires for far less!" The tweet followed a report by WIBW-TV in Topeka, that some employees at a Goodyear plant in the city were shown a slide during a diversity training session saying that the company had "zero tolerance" for wearing clothing with political messaging, including MAGA attire, as well as clothing with political themes, as well as phrases like "All Lives Matter" and "Blue Lives Matter."
The company said in a statement that it "has always wholeheartedly supported both equality and law enforcement and will continue to do so" and noted the slide had not come from Goodyear's corporate headquarters and "was not part of a diversity training class," but it reiterated its ban on political content in the workplace.
Mr. Trump also announced the U.S. is demanding the restoration of all United Nations sanctions against Iran. He has directed Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to notify the U.N. Security Council of the decision.
"The United States intends to restore virtually all of the previously suspended United Nations sanctions on Iran," the president said, calling it a "snapback" and "not uncommon."
Mr. Trump, who was highly critical of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action during his campaign, pulled the U.S. out of the Iran deal.
Mr. Trump also said QAnon conspiracy believers like him and "love our country," seeming to back the conspiracy cult. Still, Mr. Trump admitted he doesn't know much about the conspiracy theory that describes an alleged secret plot by the so-called "deep state" to undermine the president and his supporters.
Supporters wearing "Q" gear have appeared and Trump rallies, the cult has a strong following online, and QAnon supporter Marjorie Taylor Greene won a GOP primary this week. Given the strong Republican leaning of that district in Georgia, she's likely to win a seat in Congress.
"Well I don't know much about the movement, other than I understand they like me very much, which I appreciate, but I don't know much about the movement," the president said.
"I've heard these are people that love our country," Mr. Trump said.
When a reporter explained the basics of the conspiracy theory — including that QAnon supporters think the president will save the world from pedophiles and cannibals — the president responded: "If I can help save the world from problems, I'm willing to do it."
