Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff got into a Twitter beef with another exec over a controversial measure tackling San Francisco's homelessness crisis (CRM)
Kimberly White/Getty Images for Fortun
Proposition C is a ballot measure in San Francisco, California that would tax the city's largest corporations to provide more funding to homeless services.
On Saturday, the gloves came off over Twitter between Zynga chairman and co-founder Mark Pincus and Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff.
Pincus tweeted: "Prop c is the dumbest, least thought out prop ever."
Benioff countered by asking: "Mark what’s your plan & what’s your contribution to helping our homeless?"
As election day approaches, the gloves are coming off for some Silicon Valley execs over the controversial Proposition C, a ballot measure in San Francisco that would tax the city's largest corporations to provide relief in the city's ongoing homelessness crisis.
The latest bout came Saturday between Zynga chairman and co-founder Mark Pincus and Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff — the latter of whom had previously taken Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey to task for his opposition to Prop C.
Over the past two months, Benioff has become the undisputed top evangelist in support of Prop C, with him and his company donating a combined $7.9 million to the cause. That's put him at odds with figures including San Francisco Mayor London Breed, who vocally opposes Proposition C, though prominent politicians including Nancy Pelosi and Diane Feinstein agree with him.
Pincus, who according to public records has not donated to either side of the measure, tweeted on Saturday, calling Prop C, "the dumbest, least thought out prop ever." He questioned how much taxes would increase for Salesforce and Zynga should the proposition pass muster with voters, and said the proposed measure "doesnt connect the problem to the money in a logical way."
Benioff said the homelessness issue in San Francisco was urgent and that,"we can not wait any longer for a 'better' or 'more fair' plan."
Here's how the conversation went down.
Pincus' tweet set things off.
Tweet Embed:
//twitter.com/mims/statuses/1058840643340922880?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Prop c is the dumbest, least thought out prop ever. Please get the facts and vote no. Then lets all focus on real solutions for sf.
Later that night, Benioff responded, setting off a short social media donnybrook.
Tweet Embed:
//twitter.com/mims/statuses/1058945832022491136?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Mark what’s your plan & what’s your contribution to helping our homeless? Tell us in detail what @zynga is doing for them now at scale & what your plan is? The homeless have been left behind by You & the other 70 SF billionaires. Yes on C. Big business like mine pay, you don’t.
Some back-of-the-envelope math ensued to better understand how much Salesforce would be paying in taxes under Proposition C — Benioff said it would range between $10-$11 million per year.
Pincus shot back that it didn't matter how much Zynga would pay — he stood by Mayor Breed's position that it wouldn't help, no matter how much was raised by the measure.
Tweet Embed:
//twitter.com/mims/statuses/1058964124569296896?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
I have no idea what my company would pay under this and am happy to have @Benioff explain. Im happy to pay my fair share as a home owner and citizen. Why does our mayor believe it wont address the core problem?
The two execs went back and forth: Pincus agreed with Benioff that business gives a new platform to effect change, but like many in opposition to Prop C, he believes there needs to be a better plan in place to fight homelessness in San Francisco.
Tweet Embed:
//twitter.com/mims/statuses/1058971563893055488?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Clearly i agree with you which is why @zynga was the first company to contribute ($500k) when you raised $10m for homelessness.
They eventually reached some kind of impasse. At 10:25 PT, Benioff walked away, revealing his Bitmoji to the world as he slammed the door on Pincus.
Tweet Embed:
//twitter.com/mims/statuses/1058968349978193920?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
pic.twitter.com/wXa6hVDaEQ
While Benioff's own support for Proposition C is often credited to a direct message conversation with a San Francisco bookstore owner back in September convinced him to back the measure fully, the man himself says it started with a report from the San Francisco city controller's office — though the conversation helped. Either way, Benioff has thrown all of his might behind the Prop C fight, urging fellow executives to back the measure.
If passed, Prop C would bring in an additional $250 to $300 million annually to help fight homelessness in San Francisco. Mayor Breed and other critics say that the city's homelessness crisis can't be solved by throwing money at it, and that it could make things worse.
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