Billionaire GOP donor says he feels ‘betrayed’ by Trump and vows to support Biden
Billionaire Republican donor and Home Depot co-founder Ken Langone said he feels “betrayed” by President Donald Trump after the attempt to overturn the election, and he vowed to do everything he can to support Joe Biden as the new president.
Langone, who voted for Trump in 2016 and gave him credit for improving the economy, said the president “exhausted everything” when he tried to overturn the results of the 2020 election. “Biden is the president,” Langone said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”
“Last Wednesday was a disgrace and should never have happened in this country and if it doesn’t break every American’s heart, something is wrong,” Langone said, referring to the Capitol siege. “It breaks my heart, for sure. I didn’t sign up for that.”
The billionaire said he is going to focus on supporting Biden in any way he can.
“I’m going to do everything I can from Day One to make sure I do my part to make Joe Biden the most successful president in the history of the country,” he said. “If he’s a great, successful president, we all win.”
Langone said the country is facing “major issues,” citing the pandemic, mounting debt, crumbling infrastructure and an underfunded public school system.
In a CNN interview shortly before the 2016 election, Langone said that backing Trump’s candidacy was “not about Trump.”
“This is the American people using Trump as a token to express their anger and disgust with the system,” he said.
The businessman’s frustration underscores a broader message: Corporate America is breaking up with Trump. In early January, more than 170 business leaders signed a letter urging Congress to accept Biden’s win.
Some of America’s biggest companies are suspending donations to Republican Congress members who objected to the Electoral College’s votes. Other businesses have ceased making all political donations.
Correction: This story and headline have been updated to clarify Ken Langone’s statement that he felt “betrayed” by President Trump, not all Republicans.
