Here in a city where politicians fight new businesses that want to come to town, it’s no secret that Walmart remains unwelcome. But the retail giant has just landed a friend in a high place: the White House.
His name is Jason Furman, President Obama’s new pick to chair the Council of Economic Advisers. This should be of particular interest to New Yorkers: As a visiting professor at NYU in 2005, Furman authored a study heralding Walmart as “A Progressive Success Story.”
In his paper, Furman addressed the debilitating impact on the poor of this misguided, left-wing opposition:
“[To] the degree the anti-Walmart campaign slows or halts the spread of Walmart to new areas, it will lead to higher prices that disproportionately harm lower-income families.”
And he’s not the only pro-Walmart voice in the administration: Earlier this year, Obama named Sylvia Mathews Burwell, former head of the Walmart Foundation, as his budget director.
Obama wasn’t always this friendly. In 2008, his campaign attacked Hillary Clinton for sitting on the board of the Arkansas-based retailer.
Since then, however, his hometown of Chicago has opened its doors to Walmart. Meanwhile, wife Michelle gushes about the low prices and high quality of its fruits and vegetables. During a visit to a Missouri Walmart in February, the First Lady hailed the retailer for “showing us that what’s good for kids and good for family budgets can also be good for business.”
Anyone on our City Council listening?