A Message To Wal-Mart: Buy American

I remember from years back Wal-Mart having a marketing campaign "We Buy American, Whenever We Can".  However, we don't see that anymore.  With the recent main-page post by Trapper John about Wal-Mart dealing with Chinese Unions, and Wal-Mart's general hostility towards the worker, I started thinking: "Why doesn't Wal-Mart buy American anymore?"

The answer, of course, is money.  It is cheaper for Walmart to buy products made abroad, so they buy them over American-made products.

However, why shouldn't Wal-Mart buy American-made products?  Why can't WE tell Wal-Mart "We want you to sell American-made products.  We want you to stop sending manufacturing jobs overseas."?

If Americans (especially those in unions being hurt by outsourcing) would visibly stand up to Wal-Mart's tactics, we could reveal the consequences of the retail giant's actions.  Furthermore, isn't it grossly improper to be sending American jobs overseas how Wal-Mart does?

We need to let every American know that it is their patriotic DUTY to not shop at Wal-Mart, and instead go to another store.  It may or may not cost more, but it's a sacrifice we are willing to make for American workers and American ideals.

In my searching, I found some very interesting links about Wal-Mart and their business practices. Here are a few interesting quotes about Wal-Mart for you to think about:

The Wal-Mart You Don't Know - from Fast Company Magazine, December 2003

Wal-Mart wields its power for just one purpose: to bring the lowest possible prices to its customers. At Wal-Mart, that goal is never reached. The retailer has a clear policy for suppliers: On basic products that don't change, the price Wal-Mart will pay, and will charge shoppers, must drop year after year. But what almost no one outside the world of Wal-Mart and its 21,000 suppliers knows is the high cost of those low prices. Wal-Mart has the power to squeeze profit-killing concessions from vendors. To survive in the face of its pricing demands, makers of everything from bras to bicycles to blue jeans have had to lay off employees and close U.S. plants in favor of outsourcing products from overseas.

"Wal-Mart has a big pencil," says Garson. "They have such awesome purchasing power that they write their own ticket. If they don't like your prices, they'll go vertical and do it themselves--or they'll find someone that will meet their terms."

In the summer of 1995, Garson asserts, Wal-Mart did just that. "They had awarded us a contract, and in their wisdom, they changed the terms so dramatically that they really reneged." Garson, still worried about litigation, won't provide details. "But when you lose a customer that size, they are irreplaceable."

We're Screwed, New York Post, November 8, 2004

Wal-Mart has leveraged its power as the world's largest retailer to force so many American companies to move their manufacturing to China that it has helped place China in position to dominate the world's economy in our lifetime.

American drive to buy for less has a price, Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, December 30, 2003

But Bob Schuemann, executive vice president of the Hartford manufacturer, has warned employees about shopping at Wal-Mart and Home Depot.

"What both of those companies are doing is putting so much pressure on American manufacturers that they're forcing them to go overseas," he said.

"The Chinese are not our friend, OK? We're in an economic war with them."

•  Tip Jar

  By organizing a movement like this, the Democrats could re-assume the mantle of patriotism.  Like it or not, various degrees of patriotism/xenophobia are what wins elections, and "multi-cultural" values and not supporting wars to kill foreigners aren't particularly xenophobic.  Outsourcing is the one main xenophobic wedge issue Democrats have; as the businessmen paying for the Republican Party won't stand for higher costs of business.  We need to go public at enemy number 1 in this regard: Wal-Mart.

  Any American who loves his country should show that by shopping somewhere besides Wal-Mart.  There's no point in mentioning that the other major retailers are partially at fault as well; boycotts and protests only work piecemeal.  As the number-one offender, and one with a significant corporate flip-flop in the recent past, they are the ideal company to target this at.

  But this would only be successful on a national scale.  We would need every union, every Democratic politician, even some Republicans to go out and say "Wal-Mart doesn't support America".  We need to have Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid handing out fliers in front of a Wal-Mart in the Washington area.  We need job programs so any Wal-Mart employees layed off as a result of the decrease of sales at Wal-Mart can get a new job and not be financially harmed themselves as a result of the boycott.

  Wal-Mart used to support "Buy American".  Why doesn't Wal-Mart support it anymore?  Why is Wal-Mart flip-flopping on patriotism?  Why is Wal-Mart sending American jobs overseas?

  I think that we deserve answers to these questions.  Do you?  Do you think a drive like this could possibly be successful?

  by Power on Mon Nov 29, 2004 at 07:48:16 PM PDT

  •  I think a drive like this,

    will definitely bring the point home about who gets hurt in walmart's game, esp as dick cheney uses them as an example of a model business.

    what we really need to do is seek out other models of success according to our business principles, and show how the game is stacked in the favor of for those who hurt this country in the short and long run.

    by alivingston on Mon Nov 29, 2004 at 07:57:13 PM PDT

    •  we need

      some serious action against them. more than just information--a strong concerted effort to effect their business in a negative manor. Boycott, investigation, audit-repeat.

      by garfield on Mon Nov 29, 2004 at 08:02:23 PM PDT

    •  Better business plans

      Yes.  Simply moving jobs back to the U.S. won't even fix the problem, although it will help to stop some of the bleeding.  We need to find ways for responsible corporations to prosper.  The only example I can think of offhand is Ben & Jerry's.

      They may teach MBA's "A corporation's primary goal is to provide a profit to its stockholders", but we need to make sure that this isn't their only goal.  They also need to make sure they maintain a healthy relationship with the communities they service.  Corporations are supposed to help their customers, not just the corporation itself and its investors.

      by Power on Mon Nov 29, 2004 at 08:04:55 PM PDT

  •  Concur

    Have been speaking to people--it just has to stop.

    Dailykos has it's financial power of however many readers per day--well it should pick a fight with Wal Mart--57 million people should not spend their money there--esp considering that they spent so much to beat Kerry.

    Let's do it--let's make them pay. No more WalMart.

    City Councils need to invoke laws making it urban sprawl and therefor illegal to move into the area bc of decreased property values as a result.

    by garfield on Mon Nov 29, 2004 at 08:00:42 PM PDT

    •  But Kos isn't enough

      Even if every account corresponded to a person who would participate in a boycott and convince 5 of their friends to do so as well, that's only .05% of the American public.  Wal-Mart wouldn't even notice that.

      The only way we can make this work is to make sure EVERYBODY knows about this.  This shouldn't just be something the "liberals" take on.  We need "NASCAR dads" in South Carolina, military families in Arizona, retired folks in Louisiana, Evangelical Christians in Missouri, ranchers in Wyoming, EVERYBODY to know about the anti-American actions of Wal-Mart.  We shouldn't look at this as a left v. right issue.  The Democrats should lead, but this should be "The People" versus "Evil Anti-American Corporations".

      by Power on Mon Nov 29, 2004 at 08:09:34 PM PDT

•  another link

  frontline: is wal-mart good for america?

  excellent doc on this subject.  they even talk to wal-mart vendors about being forced to offshore their manufacturing to china, and then they go to china to check that out too.  you can watch it online if you missed it the other week.

  by zeke L on Mon Nov 29, 2004 at 07:56:18 PM PDT

  •  That looks good

    However, I think the question still remains: Wal-Mart is doing bad things to our economy.  What are we going to do about it?

    The solution isn't to wait until wages here are less than in China and the jobs move back here.  I think there are better solutions.

    I don't think the solution is peacemeal opposition to single stores moving in.  I remember in Decorah, Iowa there was large opposition to a Wal-Mart coming in, but they managed to build one anyhow, though I believe conceding it would be a slightly smaller store than originally planned.  We need to have a nation-wide effort, so the talking heads on CNN and MSNBC can't ignore the topic, and (more importantly) so the people in Washington don't ignore the subject either.

    by Power on Mon Nov 29, 2004 at 08:01:05 PM PDT

    •  How are you going to do it?

      There needs to be a firmer, less compromising effort if the goal is to keep them from moving in.

      by garfield on Mon Nov 29, 2004 at 08:05:51 PM PDT

•  Forget Wal-Mart

  Costco is a much better option, if you have it.  Heavily pro-dem in the soft money filings I just plowed through, seems to be the best choice for blue shoppers.

  -doug

  by zgw on Mon Nov 29, 2004 at 09:30:27 PM PDT

  •  This isn't the right approach

    I don't believe the approach is to try to get the corporate big-wigs to spend more money on Democrats.  I'd personally prefer a company that didn't spend any money on "soft money" donations.  We need to try to get the corporations out of politics.  Things get bad for us when they make the rules they play by.

    The problem is the entire system of selling out Americans in the pursuit of a higher profit margin.  Wal-Mart is the most glaring example of this, and the one doing the most harm to American workers.  And this is a change from Wal-Mart corporate policy in the past.

    We need to make an issue of what Wal-Mart is doing and how its anti-American policies are hurting America.  Simply saying "Red Voters go to Red Companies; Blue Voters go to Blue Companies" won't help anything.  This isn't Red v. Blue, this is America v. anti-American multinational corporations.  Liberals, conservatives, none of them should support Wal-Mart in their anti-American ventures.

    by Power on Mon Nov 29, 2004 at 09:40:14 PM PDT

    •  Re:

      Kind of my point exactly.  Wal-Mart won't change.  So let's not go there.  If we're going to go somewhere else similar, though, the only other similar stores except Costco are just as entrenched.  Costco's execs appear to be Progressive-minded.

      -doug

      by zgw on Mon Nov 29, 2004 at 10:49:34 PM PDT