☕ Cover: A Can of Goya Beans

Good Morning. Here’s what you need to know to start the day, along with perspective from both sides for calmer coffee conversations with your family, friends, colleagues, and co-workers. Plus, a bit of good news: A Michigan police officer has been hailed a hero after he saved a newborn girl from choking – an amazing moment captured in a dashcam video.

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Food Fights: In 1936, Don Prudencio Unanue and his wife Carolina came to the United States from Spain, by way of Puerto Rico. When they ultimately landed in New York City, they purchased the name “Goya” from a Moroccan sardine company, and started what would turn into the largest Hispanic-owned food company in the United States. Last week, Prudencio’s grandson Robert—the current CEO of Goya—went to the White House’s Rose Garden to discuss President Donald Trump’s Hispanic Prosperity Initiative, the goal of which is to increase educational and economic opportunities for Hispanic Americans. At the event, Unanue announced that he would donate 1 million cans of chickpeas and 1 million pounds of other food items to food banks. Along with this announcement, he said: “We’re all truly blessed…to have a leader like President Trump who is a builder. And that’s what my grandfather did, he came to this country to build, to grow, to prosper … and we pray, we pray for our leadership, our president, and we pray for our country.” Apparently that’s the type of statement that will cause an uproar in this country now-a-days. Here’s what both sides are saying:

On the Left: In his article for the Daily Beast titled, “This Isn’t ‘Cancel Culture.’ The Goya CEO Is Just a Moron.” Ruben Navarrette Jr. says that, “Understanding the Goycott can be difficult if you’re not Latino—or even if you are Latino, but not fortunate enough to be Mexican American or Mexican.” Navarrette Jr. outlines how, “Mexicans, and Mexican Americans, are a proud people [that] take extreme offense at being treated as a prop by Trump.” Therefore, “… if you visit the White House, step into the Rose Garden, stand at a podium and praise Trump, we’ll come after you. Especially if you’re Latino and got rich off the backs of Mexican customers.” Navarrette Jr. explains that, “For Latinos, not all of whom support the Goycott, this messy food fight is about a lot more. The Goycott, and the controversy over it, is about at least five things: the split between different types of Hispanics/Latinos; the idea that, when you go to the White House, you dance with who brought you; the fact that Trump does, despite his demagoguery, enjoy substantial Latino support and could get as much as 33 percent of the Latino vote in November; the fact that Hispanics/Latinos are famously eager to pull one another down; and the fact that Mexicans, and Mexican Americans, in particular, expect to be betrayed by one of their own.” In summary, Navarrette Jr. thinks Goya’s CEO is “full of beans.” Unanue “has every right to say what he said, but people who don’t like what he said have every right to boycott his company. That’s not cancel culture. That’s accountability.”

On the Right: Jacibe Areces writes for The Federalist that, “An Attack On Goya Is An Attack On U.S. Hispanics.” Areces says that, “as a first-generation Cuban American raised on Goya products, it is revolting to see the far-left’s attack on the largest Hispanic-owned business in the United States.” Areces believes that, “Democrats should know how important Goya is to Hispanic families, which is why it’s dumb to see liberals line up to boycott a company that helps minority communities. Goya doesn’t ask about a family’s political affiliation when they give scholarships to kids, nor do they care whether it’s a blue or red state they’re helping with disaster relief efforts. In fact, in 2011, Goya worked with and supported former first lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move campaign.” On that note, Areces believes “There is also an absurd double standard. In 2011, Unanue introduced President Obama at a reception in the White House, where he said he was ‘honored and humbled’ to be a part of those gathered for a Hispanic Heritage Month celebration while the Obama-Biden administration was deporting Hispanics in record numbers. Where was the outrage then?” In conclusion, Areces writes that, “The story of Goya is rooted in the American Dream, where hard work and perseverance allow you to achieve your version of success regardless of who you are…Food does not have to be political, but with extremists attacking a company whose products [Areces] grew up on, she and her family, like many others in South Florida, will not only continue to buy Goya’s products, [they] will double down on them. [Areces’] parents risked everything to live in freedom, and [she] will not remain silent, because an attack on Goya is an attack on Hispanic families like [hers].”

Flag This: The Goya episode is a perfect example of how the culture war is being exacerbated by social media. And in order to keep track of who’s “winning,” hashtags are a helpful tally. On the left side of the scoreboard, Democrats rallied around #BoycottGoya and #Goyaway. On the right, Republicans reacted to the backlash with a “buy-cott,” calling on more people to buy Goya products. President Trump on Wednesday said the boycott on Goya Foods “backfired,” claiming people are now buying their products “like crazy,” but it will be hard to verify the spike unless the private company releases purchasing statistics. Zooming out, one of the takeaways is how much the role of the CEO has changed during the Trump era. One wrong or right (depending on your viewpoint) comment can make or break your business in such a highly polarized climate. We thought both writers above pointed out some interesting hypocrisy. Ruben Navarrette Jr. of the Daily Beast noted how, “conservatives in recent years [have] boycotted dozens of left-leaning companies, from Nike to Starbucks to Amazon to Netflix.” And Jacibe Areces of the Federalist showed us how there was less outrage from the left when Goya’s CEO said similar comments about former President Barack Obama. Either way you look at it, it doesn’t look like the food fight is stopping anytime soon.

🦅 US NEWS

US executes 2nd man in a week; lawyers said he had dementia
“The United States on Thursday carried out its second federal execution in three days following a hiatus of nearly two decades, killing by lethal injection a Kansas man whose lawyers contended he had dementia and was unfit to be executed,” Michael Balsamo and Jessica Gresko report for the AP. “Wesley Ira Purkey was put to death at the Federal Correctional Complex in Terre Haute, Indiana. He was sentenced to be executed for kidnapping and killing a 16-year-old girl, Jennifer Long. He also was convicted in a state court in Kansas of killing an 80-year-old woman who had polio.”

• Flag This: “The Justice Department has been questioned for holding the executions in the middle of the worsening coronavirus pandemic, prompting lawsuits over fears those who would travel to the prison could become infected. The decision to resume executions after nearly two decades was also criticized as a dangerously political move in an election year, forcing an issue that is not high on the list of American priorities considering the 11% unemployment rate and the pandemic.” Keep reading.

Washington State Beat Back Covid-19. Now It’s Rising Again
“The coronavirus is once again ravaging Washington, and the number of cases has hit grim new milestones,” NYT’s Rachel Abrams reports in Yakima, Washington. “Since the middle of June, the state has reported an average of 700 new cases per day — the highest levels since the start of the pandemic. More than 42,000 people have been infected, and over 1,400 have died.”

• Flag This: “Six months after the coronavirus first reached the United States, the state that was on the initial front line — a state that locked down early and hard — is only now beginning to see how complicated and lengthy the fight may be.”
• Florida: Florida nursing homes see infections surge as workers spread virus
• Georgia: Georgia Governor Bans Mask Mandates
• Texas: Texas Health Dept. Reported Inflated Coronavirus Cases for Bexar County

🌎 WORLD NEWS

🗞️ BIZ, SPORTS, & TECH

American’s Alliance with JetBlue
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Real Madrid capture first La Liga title in 3 years
Real Madrid won the La Liga title for the first time since 2017 after a 2-1 win over Villarreal gave them an insurmountable seven-point lead over Barcelona with one game left to play. Stateside, the New Orleans Pelicans announced that forward Zion Williamson left the NBA bubble Thursday morning because of an urgent family medical matter. Keep reading.

Netflix Releases its Latest Numbers
Netflix added 10.09 million subscribers during the second quarter, which was more than the 7.5 million subscribers the company was projecting. The streaming giant also named longtime content chief, Ted Sarandos, Co-CEO alongside its founder Reed Hastings.