Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian claims his company’s decision to cut ties with the National Rifle Association to the extent it will no longer offer discounts for NRA members was apolitical.
While Delta’s intent was to remain neutral, some elected officials in Georgia tied our decision to a pending jet fuel tax exemption, threatening to eliminate it unless we reversed course. Our decision was not made for economic gain and our values are not for sale[.]
Of course.
Bastian maintains that in cutting its affiliation with the pro-gun rights group, Delta tried to remove itself from the gun control debate.
Never mind that Delta was never in the gun control debate until it chose to enter it with this move.
Bastian also claims that the company is “reevaluating the group discounts” it offers to members of other organizations that are “politically divisive.”
Sure. Two things about that, though. Delta actually has stopped the discounts for NRA members; it’s only “evaluating” that move for other groups. And: Bastian has chosen, so far at least, to decline to offer his criteria that define “politically divisive.”
I won’t be flying Delta anytime soon. Or United Airlines, which is perpetrating a similar boycott. I will be using FedEx, which says that while it disagrees with the NRA on some questions, it won’t discriminate against any of its customers over political beliefs.