Facebook Chairman and CEO Mark Zuckerberg recently paid a visit to a truck stop in Iowa, had dinner with an Ohio family and went to a Ford plant in Michigan. Perhaps it might seem like a strange leap, but these quotidian outings have been interpreted possible preparation for a run for the U.S. presidency in 2020.
At his Harvard commencement speech last month, Zuckerberg outlined a plan that uncannily mirrored some sort of political platform by "preaching a form of compassionate globalism." More profoundly and surprisingly, Zuckerberg suggested that the U.S. investigate a universal basic income, an unconditional stipend distributed to all Americans to provide a cushion against globalization and technological disruption. Donning a suit and tie instead of his signature gray T-shirt, the normally slightly deadpan Zuckerberg was unexpectedly emotive, even choking back tears while describing an undocumented student he once mentored.
In 2016, Zuckerberg urged the Facebook board to pass a clause that would enable him to retain control of the company if he ever took a leave of absence to serve in government. He questionably hired David Plouffe, President Obama's 2008 campaign manager, to help run his philanthropy, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. But "perhaps the most obvious sign of his potential ambitions was his decision to challenge himself to meet ordinary Americans in every U.S. state."
Zuckerberg has spent the past few months mingling with farmers, factory workers, and NASCAR drivers. He's planted a community garden in Texas and fed a calf at a family farm in Wisconsin. "Today we drove down to Waco and stopped in smaller towns along the way," Zuckerberg wrote about his time in Texas in January. "I had lunch with community leaders in Waxahachie who shared their pride in their home and their feelings on a divided country. I met young moms in West who moved back to their town because they want their kids to be raised with the same values they grew up with. And I met with ministers in Waco who are helping their congregations find deeper meaning in a changing world."
On the other hand, not only has Zuckerberg denied reports that he has his eye on the Presidential position, but also, it makes logical sense that he would want to visit rural and local areas to better understand consumers and the national dynamic Facebook's largest user must deal with.
Former Ticketmaster CEO Nathan Hubbard says that Zuckerberg woke up after Donald Trump's election and realized that he didn't understand American Facebook users as well as he thought he did. Critics charged that Facebook had expedited the spread of bogus news that may have contributed to Trump's victory.
So, Hubbard says, Zuckerberg has "ventured out into the world beyond his bubble to do field research." This would explain why his endeavor has come across as so campaign-like, because in essence, he is trying to decode a complicated political scene but not with the same governmental motives people believe him to possess but rather with the motives of a good businessman who is trying to understand his consumer base more efficiently to deliver a better product.
"Change starts local," Zuckerberg said in his Harvard speech. "Even global changes start small - with people like us." In his new do-gooder crusade, the CEO should take care not to "skip over the simplest solution."
