Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff speaks to thousands in Moscone South Hall during Dreamforce in San Francisco on Sept. 17, 2024.
Brontë Wittpenn/The Chronicle
Regarding “Marc Benioff says Trump should send National Guard to San Francisco,” (SFChronicle.com, Bay Area/San Francisco, Oct. 10):
San Francisco built its worldwide reputation on love, liberty, tolerance, beauty and the courage to imagine better. It’s the birthplace of Levi’s blue jeans, North Face adventure gear, Esprit’s cool rebellion, and Salesforce’s cloud empire. Innovation is in our fog. Generosity is in our DNA and Marc Benioff has long been one of the city’s most generous sons.
It is, therefore both shocking and devastating to read Mr. Benioff’s comments supporting President Donald Trump’s efforts to deploy federal troops into San Francisco to fight crime. Our crime rates are among the lowest of any major U.S. city. To what end would the presence of armed soldiers serve?
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While one can appreciate that Benioff must look after the best interests of his shareholders, did he really have to say, “I fully support the President, I think he is doing a great job”?
Great at what? Spreading fear, chaos, corruption and cruelty? Weaponizing the Department of Justice? Turning the military into campaign props? Gaslighting the country while gutting democracy? Threatening universities for teaching facts he doesn’t like? Kneeling to oil execs while denying climate science? Erasing DEI from public institutions? Rewriting museum exhibits to flatter his ego? Sending masked men in unmarked vans to snatch immigrants and activists?
If that’s “great,” what does failure look like? Martial law with a Salesforce dashboard?
San Francisco doesn’t need troops. It needs truth. Soldiers on Market Street won’t solve a thing. They’ll only feed the fear machine. Benioff owes us an explanation.
San Francisco will survive this moment. It always does. But history has a long memory. And someday, when people ask who stood up for freedom and who sold it out for comfort, we’ll remember who reached for courage, and who reached for cover.
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Mark and Susie Buell, San Francisco
Almost laughable
As a long-time San Franciscan and criminal justice professional, I was aghast to read about Marc Benioff’s suggestion to deploy National Guard troops to help reduce crime in San Francisco.
It’s almost laughable, if it weren’t so serious, to think the solution to solving crime is only through police presence and not addressing the mental health, addiction and trauma issues that are the root causes of crime. We need a combination of services, including law enforcement, to make a meaningful impact on public safety.
Benioff’s approach to have the National Guard all over would be frightening, damaging and cause significant unrest in San Francisco — defeating his stated purpose.
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Linda Connelly, San Francisco
True colors
It appears Marc Benioff is showing his true colors as one of San Francisco’s billionaire tech oligarchs. He states that President Donald Trump “is doing a great job.”
Yes, Trump is doing a great job of avoiding any consequences for Jan. 6, ignoring the emoluments clause with his relentless grifting, avoiding consequences for his 34 felony convictions, for cooking the books on his New York taxes, not paying E. Jean Carroll for sexual abuse, his straight-up racist acts aimed at immigrants who are legally in the U.S., for his wars against transexuals and the LGBT community at large, degrading women, stacking the courts with right wing extremists to carry out his agenda, and his federalizing of state National Guard troops (“state’s rights” used to be a Republican motto) and, of course, lying about all of it.
Steve Vaccaro, San Francisco
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Ready for protests?
I don’t know who I’m more upset with, Marc Benioff or the Chronicle. To publish the fact that Benioff was on his jet crying to the New York Times that President Donald Trump should send the National Guard to San Francisco is as asinine as the idea itself.
I’m sure the frustration of Benioff having to spend one dollar of his billions to protect his people is unfair. But really, Marc, do you have a suggestion on what to do about the protesters who will be more than happy to square off against the National Guard in front of Salesforce Tower?
Allen Jones, San Francisco
Who will save us?
Guest opinions in Open Forum and Insight are produced by writers with expertise, personal experience or original insights on a subject of interest to our readers. Their views do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Chronicle editorial board, which is committed to providing a diversity of ideas to our readership.
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So Marc Benioff shows his true colors, putting on his MAGA hat, and joining lockstep in the long line of uber-rich white guys cheering President Donald Trump and his thugs as they drag the country into a black hole of hate.
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America saved Europe from the Nazis. Who will save us from these guys?