This month, as conservative leaders called for a boycott of Bud Light due to the company's partnership with transgender TikTok personality Dylan Mulvaney, former President Donald Trump remained uncharacteristically quiet. There has been no mention of Bud Light or the ensuing conservative backlash in Trump's recent Truth Social posts.
RealClearPolitics observed the former president's conspicuous absence from the boycott discussion, despite numerous requests for comment. It has since been revealed that Trump, who has publicly opposed transgender rights, holds a financial stake in Anheuser Busch InBev, Bud Light's parent company.
According to disclosure forms, Trump is an investor in the company that produces Bud Light, as first reported by The Independent. In his most recent Federal Election Commission filing on April 14, Trump reported owning between $1 million and $5 million in Anheuser Busch InBev through an account named "DJT Trust - Investment Account #2."
While Trump has remained silent on the issue, his son Donald Trump Jr. has called for an end to the Bud Light boycott. On the April 13 episode of his podcast Triggered, Don Jr. stated, "I'm not for destroying an American, an iconic company, for something like this. The company itself doesn't participate in the same leftist nonsense as the other big conglomerates."
This view contrasts with those of many other prominent Republicans, as reported by Insider.
Republican presidential hopeful and former governor Nikki Haley has been critical of Bud Light's collaboration with Mulvaney, inaccurately referring to the TikTok star's gender, according to Insider. In an interview with RealClearPolitics, former Vice President Mike Pence, who is expected to announce his 2024 candidacy in the coming months, justified the boycott.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who is considered a leading contender for the GOP nomination alongside Trump, has accused Bud Light of "rubbing our faces in it" by featuring Mulvaney in an advertising campaign.
Following its partnership with Dylan Mulvaney, Bud Light experienced a significant decrease in sales at bars and restaurants across the US. Sales of the company's products declined by 6% at 3,000 different locations between the beginning and middle of April. In contrast, Bud Light outperformed its category by 15% based on sales data from March 18 to April 1, two weeks prior to the company's planned collaboration with the transgender influencer.