FIRST ON FOX: Democrat presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s campaign slammed the “narrow interests” behind woke capitalism after the Target CEO called it “great” ahead of public backlash over its June Pride Month collection.
Kennedy’s campaign told Fox News Digital on Wednesday that the Democrat presidential candidate who says he can beat President Biden in a primary election “believes in capitalism, and further, that a capitalist system can and must take into account human and ecological values.”
“He believes there is broad agreement on this basic principle,” his campaign said. “In application, however, narrow interests seek to impose their own ideas of social and ecological responsibility.”
TARGET CEO SAYS WOKE CAPITALISM ‘GREAT’ FOR THEIR BRAND AND ‘THE RIGHT THING FOR SOCIETY’
“Mr. Kennedy will seek to establish a broad moral consensus to bring capitalism in line with the human and ecological values most people share,” the Kennedy campaign added.
Target did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Kennedy’s comments came after Target CEO Brian Cornell said in a recent interview that “woke” capitalism is “great” for their brand and “the right thing for society.”
Cornell made the comment during an interview on Fortune’s “Leadership Next” podcast on May 17, days before the retail chain became the target of outrage from customers and online backlash over its June Pride month collection this year, which includes “tuck friendly” women’s bathing suits for transgender people, “gender fluid” mugs, and LGBTQ rainbow-themed clothing for children.
Cornell was asked to address the backlash to “woke” corporate campaigns, which has caused an uproar among conservative consumers and recently embroiled brands like Bud Light, Nike and Disney.
“I think those are just good business decisions, and it’s the right thing for society, and it’s the great thing for our brand,” Cornell said.
“The things we’ve done from a DEI [diversity, equity, and inclusion] standpoint, it’s adding value,” he continued. “It’s helping us drive sales, it’s building greater engagement with both our teams and our guests, and those are just the right things for our business today.”
Less than a week after the release of the podcast, Target women’s style swimsuits that advertise “tuck-friendly construction” to hide male genitalia went viral, angering some customers and igniting outrage online. In the days since, customers have laid into the brand for its pride displays in stores across the country, particularly the pride-themed children’s items and baby onesies that have irked many customers.
The reaction seemingly worried Target management, which took “emergency” action Friday directing some managers and district senior directors to tamp down the Pride sections in their stores over fears of re-creating a “Bud Light situation,” Fox News Digital first reported Tuesday, citing a Target insider.
Fox News Digital’s Yael Halon contributed reporting.