Will Conservative Investors Now Become Shareholder Activists and Battle ‘Woke’ Boardrooms? – Opinion

In the wake of Elon Musk’s hostile takeover bid to acquire 100 percent of Twitter and take the leftist, conservative-censoring Big Tech giant private, investigative journalist Glenn Greenwald — the best in the business in my not-so-humble opinion — made the following observation:

Yesterday marked a landmark day for corporate media. They were made to declare what was long known: that they do not support censorship, but that they depend upon it.

Even if Musk doesn’t buy Twitter, never forget what yesterday revealed.

The salient part was the last part of the last sentence: Never forget what yesterday revealed. 

Yesterday was a flagship day in corporate media. It was the day they were forced to explicitly state what has long been clear: they not only favor censorship but desperately crave and depend on it.

Musk might not be able to buy Twitter. But, don’t forget yesterday.

— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) April 15, 2022

We also saw other large corporations from America. Nike is a great example. It has its head high panders to Communist China while ignoring Uyghur genocide, ever-increasing suppression of freedom and free speech in Hong Kong and Shanghai, increased threats to “reunify” —invade — Taiwan, and aggressive behavior in the South China Sea? Total LeBron James-like crickets — if not outright defense.

It’s a long list that includes Apple, Roger Goodell (pathetic NFL commissioner) and Nate Silver (pathetic NBA commissioner).His equally pathetic league, Disney, Viacom, Marriott, Sheraton, American, Delta, United, Ray-Ban, MGM, American Express, Mastercard, Bank of America, BlackRock, Cisco, General MotOrs, Levi Strauss & Co., Lyft, Merck, Netflix, and Starbucks.

So considering Musk’s bid, Glenn Greenwald’s observation, the sorry state of America’s “woke” corporations that don’t give a damn about their shareholders’ or customers’ views, let’s revisit my headline:

Will Conservative Investors Now Become Shareholder Activists, Battle ‘Woke’ Boardrooms?

Will the former? Finally wake up and scream in unison, to paraphrase Peter Finch’s character in the iconic movie “Network,” “We’re mad as hell and we’re not going to take it anymore!”?

As reported by The Washington Times, the answer appears to be “yes” to finally waking up. Now the question is: What are they going to do about it? According to the Times

The American Legislative Exchange Council, a network of conservative private investors and state legislators, recently introduced model legislation that would stop state pension fund managers from introducing “woke criteria” into the investment selection process.

The National Center for Public Policy Research in Washington is a conservative think tank that teaches conservative investors how they can use shareholder proxy votes to undermine liberal policies on corporate board elections.

The center’s Free Enterprise Project has purchased shares in corporations such as the Walt Disney Co., which it says has allowed conservative proxies to introduce proposals against “woke” ideology at more than 100 shareholder meetings over the past four years.

According to The Times, Richard Morrison is a Senior Fellow at The Competitive Enterprise Institute and is optimistic:

Progressive activism has been weakened by conservative activism, especially on climate change issues and identity politics.

As noted by The Times, the Free Enterprise Project last week published a guide titled “Balancing the Boardroom: How Conservatives Can Combat Corporate Wokeness” for investors who These are mad as hell and not going to take it anymore — and push back against the woke policies of companies like Disney. Here’s one excerpt:

So if we are to learn anything from leftists, to their credit it’s that counterculture done right can be an effective strategy.

The guide urges conservative shareholders to “vote against every board member” of Nike, Amazon, Disney, Twitter, Apple, Walmart, Microsoft, and several other companies. Additionally, it singles out specific board members, including “global warming” lunatic Al Gore.

Scott Shepherd, one of the guide’s authors, said in a related statement:

Vote against these directors, and then join us in constantly reminding these companies that we sensible people of the center-right will not rest until their companies have returned to making products … and otherwise staying well away from political and social discord.

It’s way past time for conservatives across America—not just corporate investors–to take heed of the critical point made by the guide regarding the woke crowd’s use of effective strategy, the obvious reason being that simply whining (or yelling) on social media, blogs, and various comments sections, and conservative punditry is not getting “it” done. It can’t. Not alone, it can’t.

Whether it’s “fight fire with fire,” “When in Rome do as the Romans do,” or whatever other idiom floats one’s conservative boat, it’s time to act in numbers in a coordinated, effective, strategic way. We need to defeat the radical left on their terms; ours haven’t worked.

Final thoughts: It is one thing to let the Democrats have it in November’s midterms. And even if they do, maybe the Democrats will gain control of the two chambers of Congress, which would help stop this legislative madness. As a first step, it would be very different to leave the matter to corporate boards across America. What next? It will all be revealed over time.

RedState Related:

Here’s How Hypocritical the Left’s Effort to Fend off Elon’s Twitter Grab Truly Is

MSNBC Analyst Uses Elon Musk Twitter Bid as Excuse to Declare US Must ‘Abolish Billionaires’

Elon Musk’s 4D Chess Moves With Twitter May Be an Attack on a Woke Corporate Movement