WESTERVILLE, Ohio — President Donald Trump's call for a boycott of Akron-based Goodyear has at least one supporter in the state of Ohio.
Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), a fierce Trump ally, came out in defense of the president's controversial stance on Thursday.
At the opening of the 'Trump Victory Headquarters' in Westerville, Jordan took President Trump's side on the Goodyear controversy during a press conference with reporters.
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"My guess is most people work for Goodyear don’t like the top people at the corporation telling them they can’t wear their ‘back the blue’ hat or ‘back the blue’ mask," Jordan said in comments reported by the Columbus Dispatch.
“It’s acceptable to have ‘Black Lives Matter,’ but it’s unacceptable to have ‘blue lives matter’? Jordan asked. “I think the president was just stating what the majority of Ohioans believe.”
The call for the boycott came after the company reportedly told employees they couldn't wear "Make America Great Again" or "Blue Lives Matter" attire.
"Don’t buy GOODYEAR TIRES - They announced a BAN ON MAGA HATS," Trump tweeted Wednesday.
A Goodyear employee told a TV station that the company's zero-tolerance policy was "discriminatory." The worker claimed the photo was taken during a "diversity training," but Goodyear said Wednesday that wasn't true. On Thursday, CEO Rich Kramer clarified the company's position further.
Kramer said "the presentation slide was not approved or distributed by Goodyear corporate or anyone outside of that facility." The visual was created by an employee at the company's Topeka factory in an effort to explain what is acceptable to wear in the work place, Kramer explained.
The company said it has a longstanding policy that request employees "refrain form workplace expressions in support of any candidate or political party."
"Goodyear does don't endorse any political organization, party or candidate," Kramer continued. The core of our company is is our people and our culture. Goodyear has always supported both law enforcement and equal justice. We will always do so."
Also on Thursday, employees of Goodyear held a rally Thursday morning in response to President's call to boycott their products. Workers from United Steelworkers Local 2 hosted the event at their headquarters on Kelly Avenue. U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan was in attendance, along with Ohio House Minority Leader Emilia Sykes and State Rep. Tavia Galonski (all Democrats).
Later in the afternoon, Gov. Mike DeWine was asked for his opinion on the president's call to boycott Goodyear.
"We should not boycott this good company with good Ohio workers who are doing a good job and making a good product," DeWine said. The governor said he didn't fully understand the story but added that "I come down ont the side of the First Amendment."