For the second time in the past 60 days, former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz has penned an opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal that takes direct aim at the state’s political leadership, calling Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson “inept” and noting that Gov. Bob Ferguson continues to “burden businesses with one tax increase after another.”
Like GeekWire contributing columnist Charles Fitzgerald earlier this month, Schultz also points out that Gov. Ferguson’s recently-formed economic development council has no real startup representation, and is packed with big institutions.
In his piece, Schultz points specifically to Kent-based Stoke Space, the reusable rocket startup that has raised close to $1 billion in funding, as the kind of company Washington needs to fight to keep.
Schultz, who decamped for Miami earlier this year, is obviously concerned about the well-being of his former state. And the one-time presidential hopeful certainly has a lot of ideas for the place he just left — arguing that the reindustrialization of the U.S. could be sparked by matching entrepreneurs with young people seeking apprenticeship opportunities in the trades.
In May, Schultz wrote a separate piece in the Journal titled: Seattle Turns Hostile to the Great Businesses It Made.
Schultz makes some good points, and he echoes the statements of many in the business community who are concerned about the current direction. We’ve also reported recently on how other states — including Ohio — are out to eat the lunch of Washington state.
And we’ve pointed out the the long slide in Washington state’s business climate, reporting on CNBC’s report this week that ranks Washington No. 11 for business. That’s down from No. 2 four years ago, and No. 1 in 2017.
But you have to wonder: Is the coffee magnate really the best messenger for what ails Washington state? And what’s his end game? It seems his words would carry more weight had he decided to stick around, and try to fix the broken system.
Then again, Florida has its own challenges. Perhaps his next editorial will tackle a few of those.
Read the full article here
