Salesforce CEO apologizes for saying Trump should send troops to SF
sales force CEO Marc Benioff apologized Friday for making comments supporting President Donald Trump potentially sending federal troops to San Francisco, where his company is headquartered.
“Having listened closely to my fellow San Franciscans and our local officials, and after the largest and safest Dreamforce in our history, I do not believe the National Guard is needed to provide security in San Francisco,” Benioff said. wrote In a post on X.
The Trump administration recently deployed the National Guard to Portland, Oregon, and Chicago, sparking protests and lawsuits and leading to the detention of citizens and immigrants without legal representation.
One story In an op-ed published in The New York Times late last week, Benioff said he would welcome troops to San Francisco. The company’s annual Dreamforce conference was held Tuesday through Thursday this week in downtown San Francisco.
“We don’t have enough police, so if they can be police, I support that, too,” Benioff told the Times.
Benioff faced backlash from local politicians and other leaders for his comments. California Gov. Gavin Newsom and San Francisco politicians issued statements and held news conferences Wednesday to send the message that federal troops are not welcome in the city and that crime is down.
Prominent startup investor Ron Conway, who has backed companies such as Google, Airbnb and Stripe, resigned from the Salesforce Foundation board on Thursday. According to the New York Times, Conway told Benioff in an email that “their values are no longer aligned.”
Conway is a longtime Democratic donor who is a member of VCs on Kamala’s behalf and has donated nearly $500,000 to at least two funds tied to Kamala Harris’ unsuccessful 2024 campaign. While Benioff has donated to members of both parties, supported Democrats including Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and Kamala Harris are running for president.
Venture capitalist David Sacks, who is now Trump’s AI and crypto czar, said Benioff could join the Republicans following the news about Conway. On Tuesday, Sacks, Elon Musk’s longtime friend and partner, appeared alongside Benioff in an onstage interview at Dreamforce.
“Dear Mark @Benioff“If the Democrats don’t want you, we’d be happy to have you join our team,” Sacks said. wrote to x. “Cancel culture is over and we are the party of inclusion.”
Following Benioff’s initial comment to the Times, Benioff appeared to backtrack on his comments, writing about X that safety was “first and foremost the responsibility of our city and state leaders.” But by this point, Musk and other right-wing figures had adopted his original comments and made them known to their audiences.
Musk, who was criticized for his statements personal drug useHe called downtown San Francisco a “drug zombie” doomsdayAnd on Wednesday, Trump called San Francisco a “mess” and suggested possibly sending in the National Guard.
“My earlier comment came out of an abundance of caution regarding the incident, and I sincerely apologize for the concern it caused,” Benioff wrote in his post Friday. he wrote. “I have full confidence that our city will make the most progress when we work together in a spirit of partnership.”
Opposition to Benioff’s initial proposal also came from Garry Tan, CEO of startup incubator Y Combinator. “We don’t need the National Guard,” he wrote to X, but he used his post to go after liberal local officials and judges perceived as too lenient.
— CNBC’s Lora Kolodny contributed to this report.
WRISTWATCH: Benioff’s interview at Dreamforce
