Millions of American families trust Home Depot with their home improvement projects. Recently, I joined the company’s shareholder meeting to ask whether the public should trust Home Depot with their children.
I am a detransitioner. Between the ages of 12 and 16, I was placed on puberty blockers and testosterone, and at 15, surgeons removed my breasts. I carry those consequences in my body every single day. And when I spoke to Home Depot&#8217;s board and shareholders, I told them something that every person in that room needed to hear: your company&#8217;s healthcare plan appears to cover these same interventions for covered dependents — including children. Shareholders deserve to know that. Families deserve better.
This is not a political abstraction for me. I know exactly what these procedures take from a child, because they took it from me.
When my parents first sought help for what I was experiencing as a young teenager, they believed they would find counseling, support, and time. Instead, they were handed one option — and a threat. Consent to these interventions, they were told, or your daughter will probably die. The ACLU&#8217;s own top attorney has since acknowledged to the Supreme Court that there is no evidence that denying these interventions causes suicide. The claim used to pressure my family, and thousands of families like mine, was not medicine. It was a lie.
Days before I raised this question at Home Depot’s shareholder meeting, the Department of Justice (DOJ) made something clear to the entire country: this conduct is also fraud.
The DOJ announced a landmark resolution against Texas Children&#8217;s Hospital (TCH) — the first action in its ongoing national investigation into pediatric gender transition procedures. TCH has agreed to pay over $10 million in damages and civil penalties, permanently end these procedures on children, and — perhaps most significantly — fund the first-ever clinic in this country dedicated to restorative care for detransitioners.
This is a turning point in our culture. Texas will be home to the first clinic that helps victims of these barbaric procedures get back to normalcy.
That clinic matters to me personally. The medical interventions I received did not resolve my pain. They replaced it with permanent damage and stripped me of the final years of my childhood. I am currently suing Kaiser Permanente — the healthcare system that profited from my confusion — because institutions that cause this harm should be held accountable. The DOJ has now signaled that the federal government agrees, and that every provider and institution still funding these procedures should take that seriously.
Home Depot should take it seriously, too.
Based on publicly available information from the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), Home Depot still holds a perfect score on the HRC&#8217;s Corporate Equality Index — a score earned in part by providing employee insurance coverage for puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and surgeries for covered dependents, including children.
Industry leaders from Walmart to Lowe&#8217;s, Ford, and Harley-Davidson have already stepped back from covering these practices. The medical authorities in more than six countries, including our own Department of Health and Human Services, have backed away as both data and personal testimony have made the consequences undeniable.
Over half the states across the country — including Georgia, where Home Depot is headquartered — have moved to protect minors from these procedures. The Supreme Court has upheld states’ right to protect children in this way.
The landscape has shifted. The question now is whether Home Depot shifts with it or waits for a federal investigation to make that decision for them.
Former patients like me are speaking out and winning in court. Parents are organizing and showing up. The DOJ is investigating. And I will keep standing in shareholder meetings, legislative chambers, and wherever else I need to stand, until every institution that has chosen ratings and outside pressure over the protection of children is made to answer for it.
No child should need a lawsuit, a congressional hearing, or a federal fraud investigation to be protected from procedures that rob them of their bodies and their futures. Home Depot does not have to become part of what happened to me. But right now, it is — and the window to change that is narrowing.
Children deserve compassion, counseling, and time to grow up. They deserve to inherit their bodies intact.
And the institutions still standing in the way of that deserve to know: we are not going away.
***
Chloe Cole is a detransitioner, patient advocate, and plaintiff in ongoing litigation against Kaiser Permanente. She recently called on Home Depot to end its apparent coverage of gender transition interventions for minors.

Entrance to Home Depot Store

Home Depot’s Shareholders Need To Know What Their Benefits Package Did To Kids Like Me

detransitioner

DW Opinion

Home Depot

President Donald Trump deploys the National Guard to quell chaos in Los Angeles, the Trump-Musk feud continues, and gymnast Simone Biles calls out Riley Gaines over her stance on men competing in women’s sports.
It’s Monday, June 9, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here:
 
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Riots Rock LA and Simone Biles Trans Athlete Backlash" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/PoQiM46Y9fc?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
&nbsp;
If you’d rather listen to your news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
&nbsp;
<iframe style="width: 100%; max-width: 660px; overflow: hidden; border-radius: 10px;" src="https://embed.podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/la-anti-ice-riots-biles-trans-backlash-6-9-25/id1576594336?i=1000712063692" height="175" frameborder="0" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-storage-access-by-user-activation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation"></iframe>
 
<h2>National Guard Deployed To L.A. To Control Anti-ICE Riots</h2>
<div id="attachment_930951" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-930951" class="size-large wp-image-930951" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2218535156-864x576.jpg" alt="PARAMOUNT, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 7: A shopping cart is seen on fire as protesters shield themselves from flash bang grenades shot by the Sheriffs Department after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officers made raids of illegal immigrants in Paramount, California, United States on June 7, 2025. (Photo by Jon Putman/Anadolu via Getty Images)" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2218535156-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2218535156-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2218535156-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2218535156.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Jon Putman/Anadolu via Getty Images</div>
Topline: President Trump sends the National Guard to Los Angeles amid violent anti-ICE riots.
Chaos erupted over the weekend in the Los Angeles area as some anti-ICE protesters turned violent after false claims that ICE had conducted a “raid” on a Home Depot in the city of Paramount had circulated after a Home Depot in L.A. had been raided on Friday. To quell the riots, President Trump mobilized and deployed some 2000 members of the National Guard.
By Sunday, things spiraled even further out of control, with hordes of protesters blocking interstates, burning cars, and injuring law enforcement officers. In response, Northern Command said it was ready to send in 500 Marines to help keep the peace. But LA’s Democratic Mayor Karen Bass said federal authorities are making things worse – and that Trump is responsible for the widespread unrest.
“What we&#8217;re seeing in Los Angeles is chaos that is provoked by the administration,” Bass said. “When you raid Home Depot and workplaces, when you tear parents and children apart, and when you run armored caravans through our streets, you cause fear and you cause panic. And deploying federalized troops is a dangerous escalation… I call on all Angelenos to continue expressing your right, your anger, your outrage. But to do it peacefully.”
Dozens of people have been detained throughout the protests, and at least two law enforcement officers have been injured, according to a report from <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/losangeles/news/national-guard-troops-los-angeles-immigration-protests/">CBS</a>.
“There were times when things were out of control in this situation and the local law enforcement didn&#8217;t have a total handle on what was going on,” Elex Michaelson, an anchor at FOX News&#8217;s L.A. affiliate, told The Daily Wire on Sunday. “My own colleague on Fox 11, Matthew Seedorf and his photographer, Sam Dubin, were out reporting in Paramount and their vehicle, their news vehicle was destroyed with people punching out the windows – spray-painting “F*** ICE” on it, slashing the tires, stealing stuff from their vehicle – as they were out doing their job. So that&#8217;s an example of criminals taking advantage of a situation and creating chaos.”
&nbsp;
<h2>Trump Vs Musk Part 2: Midterm Boogaloo</h2>
<div id="attachment_931111" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-931111" class="size-large wp-image-931111" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2204569362-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2204569362-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2204569362-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2204569362-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-2204569362.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />(Photo by ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP via Getty Images)</div>
Topline: After their public falling out last week, Trump is warning Elon Musk to stay out of the midterm elections as the president pushes forward on the passage of his signature budget bill. 
Elon Musk, who once said he “loved Trump as much as a straight man can love another man,” continued to slam the president over the weekend. While he has deleted some of his most inflammatory remarks on X, including an allegation that Trump was covering up Jeffrey Epstein’s client list to protect himself, he has put out new statements that have drawn more attention to the rift. Musk tweeted Friday that he would “apologize profusely as soon as there is a full dump of the Epstein files.”
Trump responded by calling Musk “the man who has lost his mind” — according to a report from <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2025/06/06/politics/musk-alleged-drug-use-trump">CNN</a> the president asked his aides if the outburst could be related to alleged drug use on Musk’s part, although publicly he has said, “I don’t want to comment on his drug use. I don’t know.. [<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/30/us/elon-musk-drugs-children-trump.html">The New York Times report</a> on the subject] sounded very unfair.”
Apart from personal digs, Musk could pose a more substantial risk to Trump’s electoral prospects. Writing on X, the billionaire asked his followers if it was &#8220;time to create a new political party in America that actually represents the 80% in the middle.&#8221; After his audience responded favorably, Musk said it was “fate” and that he would name it the “America Party.” Musk spent more than a quarter of a billion dollars during the 2024 election cycle, and third-party candidates with his backing could potentially act as spoilers in key races, jeopardizing the Republicans&#8217; narrow majority.
That has gotten Trump’s attention. Speaking to ABC News, the president said Elon will “have to pay very serious consequences” if he funds challenges against Republicans in 2026. 
Allies of both men have publicly and privately called on them to reconcile, but as of now, they remain at odds. President Trump said there was “no reason to” repair the relationship, which he “assumed” was over. However, stranger things have happened – Trump’s current vice president, JD Vance, was <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/jd-vance-once-compared-trump-hitler-now-they-are-running-mates-2024-07-15/">once</a> a “never Trumper” who compared the president to Adolf Hitler years before he became one of his supporters.
&nbsp;
<h2>Women&#8217;s Sports Spat Gets Personal</h2>
<div id="attachment_931109" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-931109" class="size-large wp-image-931109" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Sad-Biles-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Sad-Biles-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Sad-Biles-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Sad-Biles-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Sad-Biles-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Sad-Biles-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Sad-Biles-1800x1200.jpg 1800w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/Sad-Biles-1200x800.jpg 1200w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />(Photo by LOIC VENANCE/AFP via Getty Images)</div>
Topline: An online debate has erupted between Olympic gymnast Simone Biles and former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines over the question of transgender-identifying athletes competing in women’s sports.
The controversy began when Gaines, a vocal critic of transgender-identifying male athletes competing against women and girls, commented on a social media post from the Minnesota State High School League. The post celebrated Champlin Park High School’s girls’ softball state championship win. However, the team’s star pitcher is a boy who identifies as a girl – and he pitched a shutout in the 6-0 victory. Gaines noted that the team turned its comments off, posting on social media: “To be expected when your star player is a boy.”
Biles weighed in by calling Gaines “truly sick” and a “sore loser,” and she accused Gaines of bullying. But then, despite being known for supporting the “body positivity” movement, she mocked Gaines’ physique, telling Gaines to “bully someone your own size, which would ironically be a male.” Gaines is 5’5&#8243;, around average height for a woman.
Interestingly, though, some X users dug up an old<a href="https://x.com/Simone_Biles/status/918328165478666240"> post</a> from Biles in which she acknowledged men’s innate physical advantages over women. In 2017, she wrote, “Good thing guys don&#8217;t compete against girls or he&#8217;d take all the gold medals!!” Gaines also noted Biles and other gymnasts suffered under Larry Nassar, suggesting that the same system that failed them then is now negatively impacting female athletes by putting them in vulnerable positions, like allowing men in their locker rooms.
Both women have received their fair share of support online. With the support for Gaines, there’s a building outcry now for brands like Athleta to drop Biles as an ambassador for female athletes. On the flip side, legacy media and many left-wing pundits voice their support for Biles. There were a number of op-eds, including one from USA Today, cheering her as a hero.
Politically, however, this issue puts Democrats between a rock and a hard place. Many of those fervent and vocal supporters, including celebrities like Biles, are deeply committed to gender ideology and allowing trans-identifying men into women’s sports and women’s spaces. The overwhelming majority disagree – a February 2025 New York Times/Ipsos poll, for example, found that about 80% of respondents believe biological males should not be allowed to compete in women’s sports, including 67% of Democrats and 64% of independents.

Morning Wire

Morning Brief: Trump Sends National Guard To L.A. & Trump-Musk Feud Continues

California

Donald Trump

Elon Musk

Gavin Newsom

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

Karen Bass

Los Angeles

Los Angeles County

Media

Politics

Riley Gaines

Riots

Simone Biles

Transgender Athletes

Women's sports

Bernard “Bernie” Marcus, the co-founder of Home Depot, has died, according to an internal memo obtained by CNN. He was 95 years old.
Marcus, a Republican megadonor worth more than $7 billion, started the hardware store with Arthur Blank in 1978. The company now has 2,300 stores and is worth nearly half a trillion dollars.
He was born in New Jersey in 1929 to Russian Jewish immigrants and got his education from Rutgers University in merchandising and marketing.
Marcus and Blank met while working at a home improvement store in California where they were both fired after new management took over.
They realized that changes were needed to the business model and that&#8217;s when Home Depot was born.
There was no immediate statement released from the Marcus family or Home Depot about details surrounding his passing.
Marcus was the company&#8217;s CEO until 1997 and served as its chairman until he retired in 2022, the report added.
He donated billions of dollars to the causes that mattered most to him, including Jewish and medical organizations, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/05/business/home-depot-bernie-marcus-death/index.html">the report</a> said.
He also gave a &#8220;$250 million grant that helped open the famous Georgia Aquarium in 2005&#8221; and donated millions to top Republicans like former President Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
In a 2022 interview with the Financial Times, Marcus said he was “worried about capitalism” in the U.S. because of the rapid spread of socialism.
&#8220;Nobody works. Nobody gives a damn,&#8221; He <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/5680bb94-4fda-4bb5-887a-62ca1b4341fd">noted</a>. &#8220;‘Just give it to me. Send me money. I don’t want to work — I’m too lazy, I’m too fat, I’m too stupid.’&#8221;
“We used to have free speech here. We don’t have it,” Marcus told the newspaper. “The woke people have taken over the world. You know, I imagine today they can’t attack me. I’m 93. Who gives a crap about Bernie Marcus?”
Marcus endorsed Trump for president late last year, warning that the country was in serious danger after being run by Democrats.
&#8220;Many of our once-great cities have devolved into lawlessness with random violent attacks on innocent people, rampant looting, and large-scale homeless encampments,&#8221; he <a href="https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2023/11/09/high_stakes_and_a_simple_choice_150037.html">said</a>. &#8220;There are rarely consequences for the wrongdoers because George Soros-elected prosecutors across America refuse to prosecute them.&#8221;
<a href="https://www.amiracist.com/?_gl=1*jtghwp*_gcl_au*ODQ1NjYzNTg2LjE3Mjg5MDk3OTE.*_ga*MTc2NzM0NDQ2NS4xNzI4OTA5Nzkx*_ga_CZKR9ZYKJP*MTczMDEyMDgwOS40OS4xLjE3MzAxMjA4MzkuMzAuMC4w" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MATT WALSH’S ‘AM I RACIST?’ NOW STREAMING ON DAILYWIRE+</a>
&#8220;Moreover, our southern border is unprotected, and millions of people we know nothing about pour into our nation to receive care and benefits that we cannot afford to provide to our struggling military veterans,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;Worse, many of the border crossers may be gang members who commit violent crimes here. Schoolchildren across America cannot read, write, or do basic math, while our educational leaders tell us that they know better than parents how to raise our children.&#8221;
He noted that inflation has taken a serious toll on working families across America who were just struggling to feed and clothe their children.
&#8220;Sadly, I see these freedoms and values being eroded today as government gets bigger and weaponized against its political opponents,&#8221; he said.
Marcus said he was endorsing Trump because he believed that he was &#8220;the best person to take on and dismantle the administrative state that is strangling America.&#8221;

Home Depot CEO Bernie Marcus

Bernard Marcus, Home Depot Co-Founder And GOP Megadonor, Dies At 95

Bernie Marcus

Business

General

Obituaries

The Home Depot issued a warning about the direction of the U.S. economy as consumers pulled back spending at the home improvement store during the second quarter of fiscal year 2024.
The company said its sales decreased by 3.6% during the second quarter and it expects sales overall for the year to drop 3-4% compared to last year.
&#8220;During the quarter, higher interest rates and greater macro-economic uncertainty pressured consumer demand more broadly, resulting in weaker spend across home improvement projects,&#8221; <a href="https://ir.homedepot.com/news-releases/2024/08-13-2024-110126639">said</a> Ted Decker, chair, president and CEO. &#8220;However, the team continued to navigate this unique environment while executing at a high level.&#8221;
CNN noted that consumer spending at Home Depot is considered a bellwether of consumers&#8217; moods about the economy and the housing market in general, as its business is closely tied to the housing market.
<a href="http://www.amiracist.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.amiracist.com/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1722714742764000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1XzmEsRwzti1RFNuISwYgd">WATCH THE TRAILER FOR ‘AM I RACIST?’ — A MATT WALSH COMEDY ON DEI</a>
The demand for housing far outpaces the supply of available homes in the U.S., thus leading to a housing shortage and exorbitantly priced homes. The situation is made even worse by high interest rates triggered by the inflation crisis that the Biden-Harris administration accelerated with reckless government spending during their first weeks in office.
&#8220;Interest rate decisions matter more to Home Depot than they do to an average retailer, if only because a large chunk of home improvement demand is tied to the housing market,&#8221; said Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData. &#8220;High interest rates have, and still are, acting as a brake on house moves.&#8221;
Saunders added that Home Depot&#8217;s revised outlook for the year &#8220;suggests more negative sentiment around the consumer economy from management and reflects a more cautious rate cutting stance from the Fed than was expected earlier in the year.&#8221;

Home Depot Stores Ahead Of Earnings Figures

Home Depot Issues Warning About Economy As Election Nears

Economy

A top Home Depot executive told a congressional panel Tuesday that the company is facing increasingly dangerous threats from shoplifting.
Scott Glenn, head of loss prevention at Home Depot, said employees have been threatened with weapons and even been killed in some cases since 2020, when the company saw a &#8220;significant uptick&#8221; in workers coming into &#8220;violent contact with bad actors.&#8221;
“Retailers are not exaggerating the problem,” Glenn <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qvU-WKkj2I" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> during a hearing of the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Counterterrorism, Law Enforcement and Intelligence.
Overall, retailers across the country lost $112.1 billion due to theft last year, up from $93.9 billion in 2021 and $90.8 billion in 2020, <a href="https://www.foxbusiness.com/retail/retailers-lost-112-billion-2022-because-unprecedented-levels-theft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to <a href="https://cdn.nrf.com/sites/default/files/2023-09/NRF_National_Retail_Security_Survey_2023.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">this year&#8217;s</a> National Retail Security Survey.
&#8220;These individuals are becoming increasingly aggressive, they are dangerous, and often care little about any consequence other than getting out of the store with as much as possible,&#8221; Glenn said. &#8220;I want to be very clear that we&#8217;re not talking about petty shoplifting. We&#8217;re talking about theft for greed, not theft for need.&#8221;
In April, a Home Depot security guard in California was fatally <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/04/19/home-depot-guard-blake-mohs-fatally-shot-by-would-be-thief/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">shot</a> by a woman who was stealing a phone charger and fled in a car driven by her boyfriend with her two-year-old child in the back seat. The victim, Blake Mohs, 26, was a Boy Scout leader and was engaged to marry his fiancée, Kasey.
<a href="https://onelink.to/dwapp" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" aria-describedby="sk-tooltip-9096" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://onelink.to/dwapp&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1702658626513000&amp;usg=AOvVaw33yXlAdoaSqByGGDeeuHM6">CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP</a>
Last year, an elderly Home Depot worker also <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/06/02/son-of-gary-rasor-home-depot-worker-fatally-pushed-by-shoplifter-demands-crackdown/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">died</a> after a serial shoplifter shoved him down onto a concrete floor.
The spike in organized retail crime has also forced Home Depot to lock up valuable products and hire off-duty cops, among other security measures, Glenn said.
&#8220;There&#8217;s the myth that [organized retail crime] rings happen only in big cities. Unfortunately criminals don&#8217;t discriminate,&#8221; Glenn said, saying this type of crime is happening &#8220;everywhere,&#8221; even in suburban areas.
Home Depot has more than 2,000 stores and more than 490,000 employees across the U.S.
Glenn pointed to several issues he said he believes are root causes of the crime spike, including the drug crisis, third-party marketplaces that make it easy for criminals to resell goods, and a lack of resources for law enforcement.
A bill sponsored by one of the House committee members, Representative Dina Titus (D-NV), the “Combating Organized Retail Crime Act,” would launch a federal response across multiple agencies to fight organized retail theft.

Home Depot To Release Fiscal Year 2003 Earnings

Home Depot Exec Describes Soaring Violent Threats From Shoplifters In Congressional Testimony

Congress

Crime

shoplifting

Theft

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/home-depot" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Home Depot</a> co-founder Bernie Marcus shredded the younger “woke generation” for laziness and asserted that “office people” are among the least motivated to work.
The businessman commented during an <a href="https://www.foxbusiness.com/economy/home-depot-co-founder-warns-woke-generation-ignoring-economys-bottom-line" target="_blank" rel="noopener">interview</a> with Fox News that companies across the nation are facing difficulties attracting and retaining young people in particular. He attributed the phenomenon to the rise of a socialistic attitude and a prevailing sense of entitlement.
“They don&#8217;t want to work. Nobody wants to work anymore, especially office people. They want to work three days a week. It&#8217;s incredible. How do you have a recession when you have people that don&#8217;t want jobs?&#8221; he said. “They&#8217;re entitled, they&#8217;re given everything. The government, in many cases, if you don&#8217;t work, you get as much money as when you did work.”
An analysis from the Committee to Unleash Prosperity found that federal supplemental unemployment benefits, food stamp expansions, child tax credit payments, and other benefits offered in the aftermath of the lockdown-induced recession could <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/some-families-with-no-one-working-can-receive-up-to-six-figures-of-welfare-in-three-states" target="_blank" rel="noopener">exceed</a> $120,000 in multiple states. Even with the expiration of the programs, a more recent <a href="https://committeetounleashprosperity.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Paying-Americans-Not-to-Work.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">study</a> from the conservative think tank found that unemployment insurance and expanded medical subsidies can exceed the national median income in nearly half of states for families with two parents and two children.
Policymakers and corporate leaders at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, discussed the merits of a four-day workweek, even as the labor market suffers from a lack of available workers that is worsening inflation across the economy. Though the speakers <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/four-day-workweek-world-economic-forum-weighs-the-merits-of-the-upper-class-working-less" target="_blank" rel="noopener">referenced</a> a number of analyses showing that employees generally prefer virtual or flexible work arrangements, other studies reveal that the costs of such setups are not palpable for employers: 85% of business leaders say the shift to hybrid work “has made it challenging to have confidence that employees are being productive,” according to a <a href="https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/worklab/work-trend-index/hybrid-work-is-just-work" target="_blank" rel="noopener">study</a> from Microsoft.
Marcus, the first chief executive of Home Depot and an <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/nobody-gives-a-damn-home-depot-co-founder-slams-americans-refusing-to-work-thanks-to-socialism" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ardent supporter</a> of capitalism, expressed skepticism toward the ability of fellow billionaires who desire to manage the future of the planet. &#8220;I certainly don&#8217;t want to see the woke generation coming up, especially the leaders. I&#8217;m watching Davos, what happened in Davos, and they&#8217;re recommending spending more money on climate control when we don&#8217;t have it,&#8221; he continued &#8220;We&#8217;ve already overspent. And if anything, climate control has caused most of the problems we have today.&#8221;
Republicans have recently argued that efforts from asset management firms to pressure portfolio companies to divest from fossil fuels have exacerbated rising energy prices. Several attorneys general <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/state-attorneys-general-move-to-block-vanguards-climate-crusade-from-impacting-public-power-grids" target="_blank" rel="noopener">filed motions</a> two months ago with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission contending that asset manager Vanguard should be barred from acquiring shares in publicly traded utilities out of a concern that the company’s emissions reduction objectives would hike energy prices and decrease grid reliability.
Marcus rebuked companies that grow enraptured with pursuing social goals rather than maximizing profits. &#8220;We need leaders who are basically thinking about the shareholders and their employees, and how well the shareholders are doing and their employees,” he said. “And I think today it&#8217;s all about woke diversity, things that don&#8217;t hit the bottom line.”

World?s Largest Aquarium Set To Open

Home Depot Co-Founder Rips ‘Entitled’ Generation: ‘Nobody Wants To Work Anymore, Especially Office People’

Home Depot Co-Founder Rips 'Entitled' Generation Not Willing To Work

Jobs

U.S.

Wokeness

World Economic Forum

Bernie Marcus, who along with his business partner Arthur Blank built Home Depot into a giant financial success, slammed Americans who don’t want to work.
Marcus, whom <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/billionaires/profiles/bernard-marcus/?sref=MTy2GeXk">Bloomberg</a> estimates has a net worth of $5.25 billion but has, with his wife, donated over $2 billion to over 500 organizations through their Marcus Foundation, spoke in an <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/5680bb94-4fda-4bb5-887a-62ca1b4341fd">interview</a> with Financial Times.
“I’m worried about capitalism,” Marcus stated. “Capitalism is the basis of Home Depot [and] millions of people have earned this success and had success. I’m talking manufacturers, vendors and distributors and people that work for us [who have been] able to enrich themselves by the journey of Home Depot. That’s the success. That’s why capitalism works.”
Marcus continued that thanks to “socialism,” “nobody works. Nobody gives a damn. ‘Just give it to me. Send me money. I don’t want to work — I’m too lazy, I’m too fat, I’m too stupid.’”
Marcus wasn’t worried about any criticism he might elicit about his comments, especially from those he termed “woke.” He declared, “We used to have free speech here. We don’t have it. The woke people have taken over the world. You know, I imagine today they can’t attack me. I’m 93. Who gives a crap about Bernie Marcus?”
Marcus reserved much of his harsh criticism for those who have reached great wealth but then sit on their money, “Too timid to jump in, these are people who took great risks in whatever they did, but they’re afraid to take this risk [to get] into the charitable world and help other people. Why, I don’t know,” he said.
Some of the recipients of the Marcuses’ largesse include the construction of the Georgia Aquarium, for which they gave $250 million, millions for an autistic center in Atlanta, and research into autism, cancer, stroke, and veterans’ PTSD.
Marcus, who has supported former President Trump and donated to both Trump and Florida GOP Governor Ron DeSantis, called President Biden “the worst president in the history of this country.” He called Trump’s policies “spot on,” but added, “It’s going to be very interesting in ‘24 because I think that DeSantis will challenge him. And may the better man win.”
After his 90th birthday, hearing that critics were targeting him for supporting Trump, Marcus <a href="https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100008008667978">fired back</a> on Facebook, “In the next ten years, God willing, I will accomplish more to save this world than my critics will do even if they had forty lifetimes.”

‘Nobody Gives A Damn’: Home Depot Co-Founder Slams Americans Refusing To Work Thanks To Socialism

Home Depot Founder Slams Americans Refusing To Work Thanks To Socialism

Capitalism

Socialism

Strive Asset Management revealed a plan Tuesday to spurn risks presented to the shareholders of ExxonMobil, Chevron, and Home Depot by the environmental, social, and governance movement, also known as <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/esg" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ESG</a>.
The series of actions, first shared with The Daily Wire, will be executed next year to prevent the companies from “prioritizing ESG over excellence,” according to a press release from Strive, which believes that its “greatest opportunity to influence positive outcomes for shareholders” through resolutions exists at the three firms.
Strive Executive Chairman Vivek Ramaswamy sent a letter to ExxonMobil CEO Darren Woods last month suggesting the addition of a “suitable director to your board ahead of preparations for next spring’s proxy voting season.” After a meeting between Ramaswamy and Woods, ExxonMobil <a href="https://corporate.exxonmobil.com/news/newsroom/news-releases/2022/1202_exxonmobil-elects-larry-kellner-and-john-harris-to-board-of-directors" target="_blank" rel="noopener">appointed</a> two new board directors.
Exxon enacted a shareholder resolution in January committing the oil company to pursue <a href="https://corporate.exxonmobil.com/news/newsroom/news-releases/2022/0118_exxonmobil-announces-ambition-for-net-zero-greenhouse-gas-emissions-by-2050" target="_blank" rel="noopener">net zero emissions</a> by the year 2050. Last year, a small ESG activist investment firm controlling 0.02% of shares in ExxonMobil <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/activist-investors-are-seizing-companies-to-push-social-justice-measures" target="_blank" rel="noopener">won</a> three board seats with the help of asset managers BlackRock, Vanguard, and State Street.
<div class="c-message_kit__blocks c-message_kit__blocks--rich_text">
<div class="c-message__message_blocks c-message__message_blocks--rich_text" data-qa="message-text">
<div class="p-block_kit_renderer" data-qa="block-kit-renderer">
<div class="p-block_kit_renderer__block_wrapper p-block_kit_renderer__block_wrapper--first">
<div class="p-rich_text_block" dir="auto">
<div class="p-rich_text_section"><a class="c-link" tabindex="-1" href="https://get.dailywire.com/readers-pass/read-only-v2?utm_campaign=dwplus&amp;utm_medium=editorial&amp;utm_source=dwsite&amp;cid=dwplus&amp;mid=z&amp;xid=0" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://get.dailywire.com/readers-pass/read-only-v2?utm_campaign=dwplus&amp;utm_medium=editorial&amp;utm_source=dwsite&amp;cid=dwplus&amp;mid=z&amp;xid=0" data-sk="tooltip_parent" data-remove-tab-index="true">TIRED OF THE LEGACY MEDIA’S BIAS CONTROLLING THE NARRATIVE AND OBSCURING THE TRUTH? JOIN US.</a></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
“While climate change is one of many factors that may influence decision-making at Exxon, we are concerned that singularly focusing on this risk factor at the expense of other considerations creates new long-run risks,” Ramaswamy wrote to Woods, “including the very real risk of underinvesting in fossil fuels to match global demand.”
With respect to Chevron, Strive will introduce a proposal that would reverse Scope 3 <a href="https://www.chevron.com/newsroom/2021/q4/chevron-sets-net-zero-aspiration-and-new-ghg-intensity-target" target="_blank" rel="noopener">emissions reduction benchmarks</a> enacted last year via shareholder resolution. The benchmarks, which were supported by BlackRock, Vanguard, and State Street, would <a href="https://www.epa.gov/climateleadership/scope-3-inventory-guidance" target="_blank" rel="noopener">require</a> the company to reduce fossil fuel usage among entities in the Chevron value chain.
Strive also co-authored a shareholder resolution for Home Depot that would undo an earlier proposal supported by BlackRock and Capital Group to conduct a “racial equity audit.” Strive contends that all hiring at the home improvement retailer “should be based exclusively on merit, without regard to social considerations which may raise legal liabilities for the company.”
The fund will launch proxy campaigns or additional shareholder resolutions in the spring if the latter two proposals do not “effectuate positive change.”
Strive was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/americans-want-companies-to-stay-out-of-politics-ceo-launches-fund-to-take-on-woke-asset-managers" target="_blank" rel="noopener">launched</a> earlier this year with the intention of pushing portfolio companies to maximize profits instead of advancing social and political causes favored by executives. PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel and Pershing Square Capital Management Chief Executive Bill Ackman were among the company’s first financial backers.
Critics of the ESG movement say that proponents blend activism with profitability in a manner that harms shareholders through lower returns. Though there are a considerable number of investors who support executives using financial power to achieve certain social objectives, a clear majority of investors would prefer political neutrality and the sole maximization of profits, according to an <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/poll-by-two-to-one-margin-investors-reject-woke-companies-pushing-political-causes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">exclusive poll</a> from The Daily Wire released earlier this year.
Ramaswamy, a former biopharmaceutical entrepreneur, has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/entrepreneur-behind-anti-woke-asset-management-fund-celebrates-blackrock-ending-support-for-certain-climate-change-proposals-that-micromanage-its-portfolio-companies" target="_blank" rel="noopener">repeatedly criticized</a> BlackRock and other rival asset managers for compelling portfolio companies into adopting left-wing agendas unrelated or antithetical to their bottom lines. The founding of Strive occurred as multiple conservative-leaning states began implementing measures to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/florida-pulling-2-billion-from-blackrock-as-company-pushes-social-engineering-with-taxpayer-dollars" target="_blank" rel="noopener">divest</a> from BlackRock, Vanguard, and State Street.

Key Speakers At Conservative Political Action Conference

Vivek Ramaswamy’s Strive Asset Management To Uproot ESG Moves At Three Major Companies

Asset Management Firm Unveils Moves To Save Three Companies At Risk Of ‘Prioritizing ESG Over Excellence’

BlackRock

ExxonMobil

Social Issues

Vivek Ramaswamy

Retail giants reported mixed <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/business" target="_blank" rel="noopener">earnings</a> results this week as <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/inflation" target="_blank" rel="noopener">inflation</a> and <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/supply-chain" target="_blank" rel="noopener">supply chain</a> issues continue to disrupt operations.
Retail and food services sales for the month of July remained virtually unchanged from June, according to a Wednesday report from the <a href="https://www.census.gov/retail/marts/www/marts_current.pdf">Census Bureau</a>, reflecting a Consumer Price Index (CPI) that remained flat during the same period. As year-over-year inflation nevertheless <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/white-house-starts-victory-lap-amid-slightly-less-dismal-inflation-reading">remains</a> at 8.5% — continuing to rival four-decade highs — retailers are witnessing disruptions in consumer behavior and adjusting their business practices in response.
Target, for instance, reported a 90% decline in quarterly profits from last year, which occurred amid the company’s decision to mark down unwanted inventory ahead of the holiday season.
“If we hadn’t dealt with our excess inventory head on, we could have avoided some short-term pain on the profit line, but that would have hampered our longer-term potential,” Target CFO Michael Fiddelke told reporters, per <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2022/08/17/target-tgt-q2-2022-earnings.html">CNBC</a>. “While our quarterly profit took a meaningful step down, our future path is brighter.”
According to Target CEO Brian Cornell, the company is prioritizing food, household items, and other inventory with a high turnover rate — even canceling $1.5 billion in orders for goods with lower demand.
Meanwhile, home improvement retailer Home Depot reported a 6.5% rise in profits from the second quarter of fiscal year 2021.
&#8220;Our performance reflects continued strength in demand for home improvement projects,” Home Depot CEO Ted Decker said in a <a href="https://ir.homedepot.com/news-releases/2022/08-16-2022-110048363">statement</a>. “Our team has done a fantastic job serving our customers, while continuing to navigate a challenging and dynamic environment.”
Walmart likewise saw sales that exceeded analysts’ expectations, even as inflation eroded profit margins. In an interview with <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2022/08/16/walmart-ceo-doug-mcmillon-says-even-wealthier-families-are-penny-pinching-.html">CNBC</a> anchor Courtney Reagan, Walmart CEO Doug McMillon <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/walmart-ceo-inflation-will-be-with-us-basically-forever-at-some-level">explained</a> that Walmart is growing its consumer base by attracting wealthier families struggling to contend with higher prices at competing retailers.
“It’s a conflicting period in terms of the data. If you look at what’s happening across categories and across income levels, inflation is having an impact particularly for those who don’t have as much money,” McMillon said. “So we see them behaving in different ways. … Higher income families are shopping at Walmart because they’re so price sensitive right now. We shared earlier this morning that families making more than $100,000 in household income have driven a lot of our growth during this last quarter.”
Likewise, McMillon — whose company boasts 1.6 million domestic employees and remains the largest private employer in the United States — said that wage inflation will endure indefinitely.
“We’ve raised our wages, which we’re happy to do … that creates a new level of which pricing has to be adjusted to reflect,” he commented. “So I think there’s some level of inflation that’s going to be with us basically forever. Hopefully we’ll see food inflation in particular improve as we go through next year.”
The earnings reports came as President Joe Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act — a $740 billion piece of legislation based primarily upon climate and tax provisions. According to a recent analysis from the <a href="https://taxfoundation.org/book-minimum-tax-analysis/">Tax Foundation</a>, the 15% book minimum tax provision enacted by the law will cost retail companies $3.5 billion.
“The book minimum tax affects industries very differently, some of which may be unintended, reflecting a tax proposal that has not been fully vetted,” the analysis observed.

Target

Retail Giants Toggle Business Strategies In Response To High Inflation

Retail Giants Report Enduring Challenges Thanks To Inflation

Inflation

Walmart

A judge ruled Friday that the U.S. National Labor Relations Board&#8217;s case against <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/home-depot-responds-after-worksheet-on-white-privilege-and-racism-goes-viral">Home Depot Inc.</a>, concerning Black Lives Matter apparel and messaging should be dismissed.
The NLRB claimed Home Depot violated employees&#8217; rights by restricting BLM messaging on their uniforms.
Administrative law judge Paul Bogas, however, sided with the home improvement retail corporation, stating that there is no &#8220;direct&#8221; relationship between BLM activism and the &#8220;terms and conditions of employment.”
BLM messaging &#8220;originated, and is primarily used, to address the unjustified killings of Black individuals by law enforcement and vigilantes,” Judge Bogas wrote, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-06-10/home-depot-wins-case-rejecting-right-to-wear-blm-at-work">according</a> to Bloomberg. “To the extent the message is being used for reasons beyond that, it operates as a political umbrella for societal concerns and relates to the workplace only in the sense that workplaces are part of society.”
Bogas added that there was not “an objective, and sufficiently direct, relationship to terms and conditions of employment.&#8221;
The judge&#8217;s ruling &#8220;can be appealed to the labor board members based in Washington, among whom Democrats now hold a majority, and from there into federal court,&#8221; Bloomberg noted.
Months ago, Home Depot <a href="https://nypost.com/2022/03/23/home-depot-ripped-for-shaming-employees-over-white-privilege/">released</a> a statement addressing a controversy on the other side of the political spectrum: a hyper-progressive worksheet on “white privilege” and “racism” that went viral online.
The company acknowledged that the worksheet is a “resource” in its Canadian division but noted that it’s “not part of any required programming,” nor was it “created or approved by our corporate diversity, equity and inclusion department.”
“While we fully support diversity across our company, this material was not created or approved by our corporate diversity, equity and inclusion department,” Home Depot said in a statement published in March. “This was a resource in our Canadian division and not part of any required programming.”
The literature defined “white privilege” as “[s]ocietal privileges that benefit white people beyond what is commonly experienced by people of colour under the same social, political and economic circumstances.”
Billionaire Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus, who retired as chairman in 2002, angered the Left back in 2019, when he said he’d be donating money to then-President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign, triggering a #BoycottHomeDepot hashtag.
“He’s got a businessman’s common sense approach to most things,” Marcus said of Trump. “Now, do I agree with every move that he makes? No, I don’t. But the truth is he has produced more than anybody else. He has. If we look at this country, I would say that we are better off today than we were eight years ago or six years ago.”
Marcus said that after he dies he will give between 80-90% of his estimated $5.9 billion fortune to various charitable causes, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/boycott-home-depot-trending-over-trump-donation-james-barrett">The Daily Wire</a> highlighted.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/home-depot-responds-after-worksheet-on-white-privilege-and-racism-goes-viral">Home Depot Responds After Worksheet On ‘White Privilege’ And ‘Racism’ Goes Viral</a>

Home Depot Wins Ruling Against U.S. Labor Board Over Black Lives Matter Apparel

Home Depot Wins Ruling Against U.S. Labor Board Over Black Lives Matter Apparel, Messaging 

Black Lives Matter

Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI)

Home Depot <a href="https://nypost.com/2022/03/23/home-depot-ripped-for-shaming-employees-over-white-privilege/">released</a> a statement Wednesday addressing controversy about a hyper-progressive worksheet on &#8220;white privilege&#8221; and &#8220;racism&#8221; that recently went viral online.
The company acknowledged that the worksheet is a &#8220;resource&#8221; in its Canadian division but noted that it&#8217;s &#8220;not part of any required programming,&#8221; nor was it &#8220;created or approved by our corporate diversity, equity and inclusion department.&#8221;
The literature defined &#8220;white privilege&#8221; as &#8220;[s]ocietal privileges that benefit white people beyond what is commonly experienced by people of colour under the same social, political and economic circumstances.&#8221;
&#8220;Social privilege&#8221; was defined as &#8220;[s]pecial, unearned advantage or entitlement, used to one&#8217;s own benefit or to the detriment of others. These groups can be advantaged based on social class, age, disability, ethnic or racial category, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, and religion.&#8221;
The worksheet also has a &#8220;check your privilege&#8221; segment, where the following choices are available: &#8220;white,&#8221; &#8220;male,&#8221; &#8220;class,&#8221; &#8220;christian,&#8221; &#8220;cis-gender,&#8221; &#8220;able-bodied,&#8221; and &#8220;heterosexual.&#8221;
&#8220;Class&#8221; privilege, the worksheet said, should be ascribed to anyone who expected as a kid they would one day go to college. &#8220;If while growing up, college was an expectation of you, not a dream, you have class privilege,&#8221; the worksheet said.
The resource claimed &#8220;racism&#8221; is &#8220;racial prejudice + power,&#8221; defining &#8220;racial prejudice&#8221; as a &#8220;set of discriminatory or derogatory attitudes based on assumptions coming from perceptions about race/skin colour.&#8221;
&#8220;Some of the portions of the worksheet appeared to be copied from a social media campaign against privilege in 2014 at the University of San Francisco,&#8221; The Blaze <a href="https://www.theblaze.com/news/home-depot-white-privilege-boycott">noted</a>.
“While we fully support diversity across our company, this material was not created or approved by our corporate diversity, equity and inclusion department,&#8221; Home Depot said in a statement. &#8220;This was a resource in our Canadian division and not part of any required programming.&#8221;
https://twitter.com/libsoftiktok/status/1506432641364467719
Back in 2019, billionaire Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus angered the Left when he said he&#8217;d be donating money to then-President Donald Trump&#8217;s re-election campaign, triggering a #BoycottHomeDepot hashtag.
“He’s got a businessman’s common sense approach to most things,” Marcus said of Trump. “Now, do I agree with every move that he makes? No, I don’t. But the truth is he has produced more than anybody else. He has. If we look at this country, I would say that we are better off today than we were eight years ago or six years ago.”
Marcus, who retired as chairman of Home Depot in 2002, said that after he dies he will give between 80-90% of his estimated $5.9 billion fortune to various charitable causes, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/boycott-home-depot-trending-over-trump-donation-james-barrett">The Daily Wire</a> highlighted.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/boycott-home-depot-trending-over-trump-donation-james-barrett">‘Boycott Home Depot’ Trending Over Trump Donation; There’s Just A Few Problems</a>

Home Depot Responds After Worksheet On ‘White Privilege’ And ‘Racism’ Goes Viral

White Privilege

A Home Depot in Lakewood, California, was the latest business to be victimized by a rash of “flash mob” smash-and-grab robberies currently going on throughout the state.
The Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department told <a href="https://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2021/11/27/group-of-men-steal-tools-from-lakewood-home-depot/">CBS 2 LA</a> that employees reported a group of between 8 and 20 people, between the ages of 15 and 20 years old, entering the Home Depot in the Lakewood Center Mall at around 7:45 p.m. on Friday. The suspects reportedly arrived in 10 cars, put on ski masks, and stole sledgehammers, hand hammers, and crowbars. The group then fled the scene in the cars. One car was described as a red Mercedes with severe damage to the front.
CBS 2 later reported that four suspects had been arrested in possible connection with the robbery. Beverly Hills Police received a call about several vehicles driving with no license plates around 9 p.m. Friday, according to the outlet. Officers responded, pulling over one of the vehicles and arresting the suspects.
“We’re currently working with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department to see if there is a link to the Lakewood Home Depot incident or any other crimes that have been committed,” Beverly Hills Police Sergeant Jeff Newman told CBS 2.
The robbery was one of several attacks that took place around the country on Black Friday. A mall in North Carolina was evacuated after three people were shot at around 3:23 p.m. Friday afternoon, The Daily Wire reported. Among the reported victims was a 10-year-old boy with non-life-threatening injuries, and two other victims in unknown condition. Three others were injured during the evacuation, but those injuries were considered non-life-threatening as well, police said. One suspect was taken into custody, while two more are still at large.
A group of about 20-30 people also attacked a Best Buy store in Minneapolis around 8 p.m. Friday night, stealing an unknown amount of merchandise, then fleeing before the police could arrive. No arrests have been made, according to <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/robbers-swarm-best-buy-minnesota-black-friday-theft/">CBS News</a>. Another Best Buy in nearby Maplewood was also attacked.
The state of California has been reeling from the rash of “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/experts-mocked-after-saying-california-crime-spree-isnt-looting-but-rather-organized-robbery">organized retail crime</a>” in recent weeks, with groups of people breaking into stores, smashing merchandise displays, and grabbing as much merchandise as they can before fleeing the scene. A group of thieves stole more than <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/thieves-hit-california-apple-store-make-off-with-20000-worth-of-loot-in-brazen-daytime-robbery">$20,000</a> from an Apple store in Santa Rosa, about 50 miles from San Francisco. Another mob attacked a Nordstrom luxury outlet in the Los Angeles area, assaulting a security guard with an unknown chemical and making off with at least seven luxury handbags. Last weekend, mobs robbed <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/mobs-rob-three-san-francisco-area-stores-in-three-days">three different stores</a> in the San Francisco Bay Area in a span of three days.
Former Philadelphia Police Commissioner <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/former-philly-pd-commissioner-california-looting-spree-wont-be-stopped-will-spread-across-the-country">Charles Ramsey</a> told CNN Thursday that he believed the thefts would eventually spread across the country. “This is something now that I really unfortunately think is going to spread,” Ramsey said, as reported by The Daily Wire. “Right now it’s in California, but it will spread, there’s no question about it.”

California Home Depot Latest Store To Be Robbed Amid Black Friday Crime Spree

Black Friday

Robbery

Menu