Salesforce CEO says the National Guard should patrol San Francisco — and it stuns his PR team

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Marc Benioff was a longtime San Francisco billionaire, libertarian-leaning tech executive who funded homeless services, I donated to the city’s public schools, and hosted a fundraiser for Hillary Clinton.

But in a new and large-scale way Telephone interview Speaking to the New York Times from his private plane, Benioff revealed a policy shift that appears to have surprised even his communications team, even though Salesforce has hundreds of contracts with the federal government.

The Salesforce founder announced that he “fully supports” President Trump and believes National Guard troops should be patrolling the streets of San Francisco. He spoke passionately about sitting across from Trump at a state dinner at Windsor Castle, telling the president “how grateful I am for everything he does.” He praised the efficiency efforts of Elon Musk’s government, and said he did not closely follow news about immigration raids or Trump’s attacks on the media.

The 50-minute conversation reportedly ended after Benioff walked up to his PR person, apparently noticing her expression. “What about political matters?” he can be heard asking. “Too hot?”

Although Benioff’s shift reflects Trump’s broader adjustment to Silicon Valley, the stock market offered a rare glimpse of how far this repositioning could go. The question now: Will other Bay Area tech CEOs follow Benioff’s lead and call for federal troops in their backyard?



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