SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Donald Trump has waded into yet another controversial, emotionally charged issue: Starbucks cups.
This year the coffee giant opted for a simple cup in which to serve coffee, tea and flavored beverages in November and December. Gone are the snowflakes, fir trees, ornaments, sledders, snowmen and stars. This year the cups are just red — which some Christians allege is the secular company wringing the last bitty remains of Christmas out of the most wonderful time of year.
Trump, who hosts a Starbucks coffee shop in his iconic Trump Tower in Manhattan, brought up the controversy amid a rant about jobs being shipped overseas, hurting college students who are searching for work to pay off their crushing loan debt.
"Did you read about Starbucks?" Trump asked a crowd of about 10,200 during a rally at a convention center on Monday evening. "No more 'Merry Christmas' at Starbucks. No more."
The crowd booed loudly.
"Maybe we should boycott Starbucks," Trump said, having reminded the crowd that the company is his tenant. "I don't know. Seriously. I don't care. By the way: That's the end of that lease. But who cares? Who cares? Who cares?!"
Trump then hit the crowd with this promise: "If I become president, we're all going to be saying 'Merry Christmas' again. That I can tell you. That I can tell you! Unbelievable."