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Potential Presidency for Zuckerberg?

17 points| BrahamMehta | 8 years ago |wsj.com | reply

38 comments

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[+] creaghpatr|8 years ago|reply
Last sentence of the article, which is improperly titled for some reason:

>As Mr. Zuckerberg was leaving, he made one request, Mr. Moore said.

>“He said, ‘If there are any news reporters that call you, just make sure you tell them I’m not running for president.’”

The majority of the article is just about how Zuck's entourage worked to try and make his encounters feel more spontaneous. I felt bad for both the tokenized middle Americans and for Zuck, for whom the construction of his social encounters was necessary for security (and lets not kid ourselves, probably PR) reasons. I don't know if he'll run for President but I think for as tacky and PR-related as the trip is, I think he does genuinely want to learn more about the rest of the country, if only to improve Facebook's UX.

That's not an endorsement though. I think he would get crushed in a Presidential campaign.

[+] Simulacra|8 years ago|reply
I will spend every time I have against Zuckerberg becoming President. I do not trust him, and I do not want Facebook or him running this country; Sadly, in many ways, they already do.
[+] mdevere|8 years ago|reply
He is Hillary 2.0 and would be a disaster for Democrats.
[+] gremlinsinc|8 years ago|reply
I wouldn't say Hillary 2.0 ... I like Mark, I hate Hillary... I don't think Hillary would be quick to jump on single-payer healthcare and guaranteed basic income trains... but I'm not really sure he's cut out to be a politician, personally I'd much rather it be Bernie Sanders, he was born for the job.
[+] wavefunction|8 years ago|reply
I hope he sticks to running facebook and his... charitable endeavors.

From my perspective the current inhabitant of the White House provides a fine illustration that "success" in the world of business does not necessarily translate into success or effectiveness in the world of public service and politics. This feeling has only been compounded by the likes and conduct of members of the current administration like Tillerson and Mnuchin.

Zuckerberg's demand not to be quoted after meeting and talking with people is a huge red flag to me, for example.

[+] wfunction|8 years ago|reply
To be honest, I'm no fan of oil company CEOs, but I have yet to see anything bad from Tillerson as secretary of state. He seems like a pretty normal secretary of state, and almost like the only sane guy in the administration.
[+] jacquesm|8 years ago|reply
> From my perspective the current inhabitant of the White House provides a fine illustration that "success" in the world of business does not necessarily translate into success or effectiveness in the world of public service and politics.

The effect is the opposite. The current inhabitant of the White House proves to a whole slew of people that they too could become president, qualifications being irrelevant and the general feeling that they wouldn't do an even worse job of it.

[+] zitterbewegung|8 years ago|reply
I would see Zuckerberg rise to power by first becoming a California Governor. Maybe he could swing by getting the Republican Nomination without experience .
[+] wfunction|8 years ago|reply
He's doing this because he thinks he's a competent politician who could make the world better? Or because he's looking at Trump and eyeing the throne, realizing everything a billionaire president could get away with?
[+] 4y5yswghe|8 years ago|reply
Trump seems to have proven that wealth is now considered enough of a virtue in its own right to qualify you for the highest office in the country, regardless of lack of political (or any elected) experience, policy ideas, general principles, or character.
[+] scj|8 years ago|reply
The core question I have is... How much advantage is there skewing Facebook in favour of a candidate? Could it translate to a 3% improvement in the polls?

Even if it could help, it'd probably be wiser for him to back a candidate that shares his vision than run himself. It only makes sense if he can't find someone he would endorse (publicly or otherwise), or if he just wants the job for himself.

[+] Finnucane|8 years ago|reply
I have a hard time imagining Zuckerberg going along with letting someone else run Facebook for four years while he was doing something else.
[+] e15ctr0n|8 years ago|reply
He's already doing it with Sheryl Sandberg.
[+] e40|8 years ago|reply
Paywall, so I can't read before commenting, but the main question: would he need to divest himself of FB shares before running and/or if he wins?
[+] Finnucane|8 years ago|reply
Not necessarily. Past presidents used blind trusts to put their assets and investments aside so that in theory they wouldn't be motivated by personal profit while president. It's not illegal for a president to conduct personal business while being president. It's unethical for the president to use his office for personal gain. And it is unconstitutional for the president to take money from representatives of foreign governments.
[+] toxican|8 years ago|reply
I believe glaring conflicts of interests are a requirement at this point.
[+] brndnmtthws|8 years ago|reply
Maybe he'll hold a press conference with a stack of blank sheets of paper claiming they prove he's completely divested from his businesses, all while refusing to allow anyone to inspect the documents.
[+] Danihan|8 years ago|reply

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[+] 4y5yswghe|8 years ago|reply
Crossing out 'Black lives matter' and writing 'All lives matter' is, to me, the equivalent of denigrating the NAACP because all people deserve advancement. Yes, 'All lives matter' is a true statement. But by writing that you come off as being completely oblivious to context and why 'Black lives matter' was written in the first place.

EDIT: Perhaps BLM could have averted all of this hubbub regarding the phrase if they had just included the implied 'too'. As in, 'Black lives matter too.'

[+] jgh|8 years ago|reply
Crossing out "Black lives matter" in favor of "All lives matter" is not pursuing equality. It is doing the opposite.
[+] netinstructions|8 years ago|reply
Huh? You can't get past Zuckerberg for asking staff to stop being disrespectful?
[+] geofft|8 years ago|reply
How is crossing out "Black lives matter" in any sense related to pursuing actual equality?

I also am definitely opposed to Zuckerberg for president, but I just don't understand the logic here. If they were merely writing "All other lives matter too," I'd understand where you were coming from, but I don't understand how crossing out the statement is praiseworthy.