(NewsNation) — Billionaire Amazon founder and Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos is defending his decision to scrap the paper’s decadeslong history of presidential endorsements.
While admitting the timing may not have been ideal, Bezos said the decision was “principled.”
Since Bezos vetoed the Post’s endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris, three members of its editorial board resigned, and more than 200,000 subscribers have canceled their subscriptions, according to NPR.
“Presidential endorsements do nothing to tip the scales of an election,” Bezos said in an owner’s note in Monday’s op-ed section of the Post. “We must be accurate, and we must be believed to be accurate. It’s a bitter pill to swallow, but we are failing on the second requirement.
“Most people believe the media is biased. Anyone who doesn’t see this is paying scant attention to reality, and those who fight reality lose.”
Race for Pennsylvania: Democrats dominate early voter turnout
Harris said the lack of endorsement was “disappointing” while on “The Breakfast Club” Tuesday morning.
“It’s billionaires in Donald Trump’s club. That’s who’s in his club,” she told host Charlamagne Tha God.
In his statement, Bezos said, “Presidential endorsements do nothing to tip the scales of an election” and that the decision was “entirely internally” made.
“Neither campaign nor candidate was consulted or informed at any level or in any way about this decision,” he added.
The Los Angeles Times chose not to endorse either candidate, leading to a similar backlash.
