Amazon CEO and Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos praised Donald Trump’s presidential victory — days after reportedly killing his outlet’s endorsement of the vice president.
“Big congratulations to our 45th and now 47th President on an extraordinary political comeback and decisive victory,” Bezos wrote on X Wednesday morning. “No nation has bigger opportunities. Wishing @realDonaldTrump all success in leading and uniting the America we all love.”
The Washington Post had an endorsement of Kamala Harris ready to go last month when newspaper leaders suddenly announced the publication would no longer endorse candidates. Bezos was behind the ultimate decision to kill the piece, the outlet reported, citing four unnamed sources with knowledge of the decision.
Following this report, several of the Post’s reporters and subscribers slammed the decision. As of last week, the outlet reported losing 250,000 subscribers.
“This is cowardice, with democracy as its casualty,” former Post Editor-in-Chief Marty Baron wrote after the announcement. “@realdonaldtrump will see this as an invitation to further intimidate owner @jeffbezos (and others). Disturbing spinelessness at an institution famed for courage.”
Bezos went on to argue in a Post opinion piece that endorsements have little impact on voters and contribute to record-high perceptions that the media is untrustworthy.
“Presidential endorsements do nothing to tip the scales of an election,” Bezos wrote. “No undecided voters in Pennsylvania are going to say, ‘I’m going with Newspaper A’s endorsement.’ None. What presidential endorsements actually do is create a perception of bias. A perception of non-independence.”
Post publisher and CEO Will Lewis wrote that the Post is going back to its original policy of not endorsing presidential candidates. The Post only began making endorsements in 1976, he said.
“We recognize that this will be read in a range of ways, including as a tacit endorsement of one candidate, or as a condemnation of another, or as an abdication of responsibility,” Lewis wrote.
“That is inevitable,” he added. “We don’t see it that way. We see it as consistent with the values The Post has always stood for and what we hope for in a leader: character and courage in service to the American ethic, veneration for the rule of law, and respect for human freedom in all its aspects.”
