Online news site BuzzFeed is out: They've bowed out of a $1.3 million advertising buy from the RNC because the Donald Trump campaign is too unpalatable to stomach.
In an email to staff on Monday, BuzzFeed founder and CEO Jonah Peretti explained that in April, the RNC and BuzzFeed signed an agreement to "spend a significant amount on political advertisements slated to run during the Fall election cycle." But since Trump became the nominee his campaign has proven themselves to be "directly opposed to the freedoms of our employees in the United States," because of proposed bans on Muslim immigration and comments about descendants of immigrants, among other policies.
It's not clear that Trump's rhetoric these past few weeks is any different from his behavior back in April, when the advertising deal was inked, but it has at least become clear that Trump has no intention of backing away from his flagrant racist rhetoric and the RNC, despite what they may have assured advertisers as Trump dispatched with the last of his opponents, has no ability to rein in Trump's worst instincts.
The letter sent from BuzzFeed's CEO to company employees cites Trump's long-term stances against, well, pretty much everything:
The tone and substance of his campaign are unique in the history of modern US politics. Trump advocates banning Muslims from traveling to the United States, he's threatened to limit the free press, and made offensive statements toward women, immigrants, descendants of immigrants, and foreign nationals.
[...] The Trump campaign is directly opposed to the freedoms of our employees in the United States and around the world and in some cases, such as his proposed ban on international travel for Muslims, would make it impossible for our employees to do their jobs.
As individual companies bow out from advertising arrangements with the Republican Party, it certainly puts a spotlight on those that are left. Companies sponsoring the Republican convention, in particular, will be expected to square Trump's stance against not-white-enough federal judges, Muslims, immigrants, the press, and so forth with their desired company image and supposed company ideals; are there companies in America eager to become known as the official sponsors of belligerent, xenophobic rage?
I guess we'll find out. As the BuzzFeed bow-out shows, it was easier to agree to these deals in past months, when there was still some room for Republicans to assure partners that things weren't going to be as bad as it looked like they'd be. Now that Trump really is the nominee—full racist jackass Trump, not some theoretical watered-down version—Reince Priebus and team can't make such claims. Expect other companies to bow out of prior arrangements with the party as well, citing this-or-that new Trump statement. When you know there's a train wreck coming, it's best to get off the train.