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(CNN) –– US President Donald Trump asked his followers not to buy Goodyear tires and threatened to remove them from his presidential limousine, despite having previously criticized the so-called “cancel culture” or “cancellation culture. "Or signaling, a behavior that occurs mainly on social networks and seeks to" cancel "or reject a character or company as a repudiation of a comment or action.
The president's request came after a Goodyear employee posted a viral photo of a company policy banning the Trump election campaign slogan "Make America Great Again" and other political attire in the workplace.
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"Do not buy GOODYEAR TIRES–– They announced a ban on MAGA caps [acronyms for" Make America Great Again "]," wrote the president on his Twitter account this Wednesday morning. He added: “Get better tires for a lot less! (This is what radical left-wing Democrats do. We can pay them in kind and we have to start doing it now.)
Trump's tweet came in response to an employee at a Goodyear plant in Topeka, Kansas, who posted an image –– obtained by CNN affiliate WIBW –– showing a slide indicating that “Black Lives Matter "and LGBTI pride are" acceptable ", while" Blue Lives Matter "," All Lives Matter "," Make America Great Again "and other political material are" unacceptable ".
After the president's message, Goodyear issued a statement in which it stated that "the visual element in question was not created or distributed by the Goodyear company." However, he added that he asks his associates "to refrain from expressions in the workplace that support political campaigns of any candidate or political party, as well as similar forms of activism that are outside the spectrum of issues of justice and racial equity." .
The company also stated that it "has always wholeheartedly supported both equality and law enforcement and will continue to do so."
Coincidentally, the president's limousine, known as the "Beast," has custom Goodyear tires. The company noted in a 2009 statement that it is "the exclusive tire for the presidential limousine and the standard tire of the United States Secret Service."
Trump campaign launches face masks 0:49In response to a journalist's comment during Wednesday's press conference that the Beast uses Goodyear tires, Trump responded that he would like to change them if there is an alternative.
When a reporter during a Wednesday press conference pointed to the fact that the Beast uses Goodyear tires, Trump said he would like to see them changed if there was an alternative.
“I would change them, based on what I heard. We will see what happens. There will be many people who will no longer want to buy that product, and will buy it from a competitor, made in America, "he said.
During the briefing, Trump reiterated his position, telling the media that he "is not happy with Goodyear."
Trump focused his argument not on banning his campaign slogan, but on the company's policy of allowing clothing with references to Black Lives Matter, likening the movement to a "Marxist" group.
"They are using their power over these people," said the president, adding that the company was "doing politics."
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said Wednesday that Goodyear's statement "did not clarify her policy."
“What happened is that an image was published that showed that a certain speech was acceptable: the Black Lives Matter badge, for example. But what was not allowed was Blue Lives Matter, "she said. «What was not allowed were the MAGA hats. What was clearly aimed at was a certain ideology. They have not denied that this image was presented in one of their facilities, "she insisted.
McEnany later claimed that Blue Lives Matter is as important an equity issue as Black Lives Matter.
Trump's tweet may also be appealing to voters in a key contested state: The tire company is based in Akron, Ohio.
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Trump, who criticized political correctness during his 2016 campaign, now portrays himself as a warrior against what he says is a left-wing "culture of cancellation," seeking to punish or reject people for allegedly objectionable words or acts.
"One of their political weapons is 'culture': kicking people out of their jobs, shaming dissidents, and demanding total submission from anyone who disagrees. This is the very definition of totalitarianism, and it is completely alien to our culture and our values, and it has absolutely no place in the United States of America, ”Trump said in a July 3 speech at Mount Rushmore.
Trump's tweet about Goodyear is far from the first time he has called for boycotts, cancellations and layoffs of people and a wide variety of products and entities.
CNN's fact-checking team compiled a non-exhaustive list of more than 30 examples since 2012, including anchors and television networks, other media publications, Macy's department stores and Mexico.
Maegan Vazquez, Allie Malloy and Daniel Dale, all from CNN, contributed to this report.
United States Goodyear political campaign