When New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani and Senator Bernie Sanders showed up on the Brooklyn picket line to cheer on striking Starbucks workers, the media framed it as a noble stand for labor. Conservatives should call it what it is: a photo op by left-wing politicians who love shouting for unions when a camera is rolling but rarely wrestle with the economic realities their policies help create.
Then a clip circulated, amplified by commentators on the right, showing Mamdani and Sanders seeming oblivious to the broader context while praising the walkout. The viral moment that Dave Rubin shared has become fuel for a legitimate question conservatives have been asking for years: why cheer on labor disruption while ignoring the tech that makes those jobs vanish?
Make no mistake: the coffee business is already being automated in many forms, from advanced espresso machines to robotic kiosks that can pump out drinks faster and cheaper than a human crew. Large chains have experimented with systems designed to reduce labor steps and speed service, which means the romanticized image of the unionized barista is colliding with an industry rushing toward automation.
Even Starbucks’ new leadership has admitted that their push to replace labor with machines didn’t always play out as planned, a reminder that corporate promises and union rhetoric can both mislead the public about who actually pays the cost. If political leaders want to help working Americans, they should be honest about how technology, corporate strategy, and bad policy combine to hollow out middle-income jobs.
Meanwhile, the left is eager to turn the story into a morality play about corporate greed — even as Starbucks reels from legal settlements and PR headaches tied to its own labor practices and restructuring. The company’s finances and executive payouts have been dragged into the debate, and hard-working taxpayers deserve a full accounting before our leaders vow eternal fealty to any corporate-labor drama that lands them a photo.
Patriots who actually care about blue-collar America should stop applauding theatrics and start demanding common-sense solutions: policies that encourage real job creation, skills training for displaced workers, and accountability for corporations that treat employees as disposable. Support for workers should never be a prop for political stunts or a blind crusade that ignores the machines and market forces already reshaping livelihoods.
