CHICAGO (Reuters) - Starbucks Corp Chief
Executive Howard Schultz Wednesday said that more than 100
U.S. business leaders have signed on to his call to withhold
political contributions from lawmakers until they strike a
bipartisan debt deal.
Earlier this month, Schultz made headlines when he called
for business leaders to pledge not to make campaign
contributions to incumbents until they reach a debt deal. The
business leaders would also agree to speed up employment.
On Wednesday, Schultz released a list of 25 business
leaders who had signed on to the pledge. The list included the
CEOs of media company AOL, financial exchange operators
Nasdaq OMX Group and NYSE Euronext, and
networking equipment maker Juniper Networks Inc.
Schultz said the list included those who had already given
him permission to disclose their names. Most of the biggest
U.S. companies, including all of the 30 listed in the Dow Jones
industrials average, were not named in the list.
Schultz said the more than 100 leaders who have signed the
pledge represent start-ups to multibillion-dollar global
enterprises.
He also said in a letter that he would release a more
exhaustive list as he received permission from more of those
who have signed up.
Schultz's efforts came as wealthy business leaders step up
to challenge U.S. politicians who put their partisan bickering
on display during the recent debt ceiling debate. That
performance helped send consumer confidence to a more than
three-decade low and was cited when Standard & Poor's
downgraded the U.S. credit rating.
Also this month the New York Times ran an op-ed piece by
Warren Buffett in which the billionaire investor called for the
United States to raise taxes for mega-rich individuals --
including Buffett himself..
(Reporting by Brad Dorfman; Editing by Steve Orlofsky)
© 2013 Thomson/Reuters. All rights reserved.