Trump Supports TikTok Acquisition, Calling Oracle a Great Company

Calls to Boycott Goodyear Tires Urged

▲Donald Trump, President of the United States [Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] President Donald Trump expressed support for Oracle in relation to the acquisition of TikTok, the Chinese social networking service (SNS) that shares short 15-second videos.

According to CNBC on the 19th (local time), President Trump stated at a rally in Yuma, Arizona the previous day, "Oracle is a great company and its owner is an amazing person," adding, "If it's Oracle, they will definitely handle TikTok well."

This is interpreted as President Trump stepping in to back Oracle amid the heated bidding war for TikTok's U.S. operations, which also involves Microsoft (MS), Twitter, and others.

Larry Ellison, founder and CEO of Oracle, is one of the rare pro-Trump figures in Silicon Valley. Considering that IT companies concentrated in Silicon Valley traditionally lean strongly towards supporting the Democratic Party, this is unusual. In fact, Larry Ellison held a fundraising event for President Trump earlier this year at his home in California.

Earlier, on the 14th, President Trump issued an executive order demanding ByteDance, TikTok's parent company, to sell all of TikTok's U.S. operations within 90 days, citing national security threats.

Meanwhile, President Trump posted on Twitter urging a boycott of Goodyear tires, saying, "Don't buy Goodyear tire products; buy much cheaper and better tires." This came after Goodyear allowed attire featuring the slogan "Black Lives Matter" as part of diversity training but banned clothing with Trump's political slogan "Make America Great Again (MAGA)."

CNN reported, "Coincidentally, President Trump's official limousine, 'The Beast,' is equipped with custom Goodyear tires."