Speculation on Dick's CEO's presidential aspirations stirs political waters

Twitter is afire with reports that Ed Stack, billionaire CEO of Dick’s Sporting Goods, might run for U.S. president through a third-party bid.

Stack, who has homes in Sewickley and North Palm Beach, Fla., made national headlines when he halted the sale of semi-automatic weapons and destroyed a cache worth $5 million in the wake of the 2018 Parkland, Fla., school shooting.

“When Parkland happened — watching those kids, listening to those parents — it had a profound effect on me. It was at that point I said, ‘I just don’t want to sell these guns, period,’ ” Stack told The New York Times in an article published Friday.

On Wednesday, Politico reported that Stack is testing the idea of running for president with a focus group in the Midwest this week. The group was helping determine how Stack might fare in possible three-way matchups against President Donald Trump and Democratic challengers Joe Biden or Elizabeth Warren.

Stack did not immediately return a call for comment from the Tribune-Review. He also was not quoted in the Politico article, and The New York Times made clear that its interview with Stack was conducted before any public talk surfaced of his possible run at the presidency.

Some believe that Stack, 64, a longtime donor to GOP causes who is registered with no party affiliation, has the resources to mount a third-party bid that could change the calculus of the 2020 election.

He angered various gun-rights groups with his decision to abandon sales of assault-style weapons and won accolades from gun-control advocates recently in his book “It’s How We Play the Game,” when he called for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to bring a vote on universal background checks to the floor.

"It's not a political hot button any longer. I don't know what McConnell's afraid of." ~ @DICKS CEO Ed Stack on Senate Majority Leader McConnell's refusal to bring background checks legislation - supported by 90% of Americans - to a vote in the Senate https://t.co/75zNtW6x39

— Moms Demand Action (@MomsDemand) October 22, 2019

Meanwhile, reports that he is entertaining presidential aspirations led to a spate of comments on Twitter from gun-rights advocates.

“Would it be too cynical to suggest this is all just a ruse to goose sales of his book that virtually no one is buying?” @guntruth Tweeted.

Would it be too cynical to suggest this is all just a ruse to goose sales of his book that virtually no one is buying?#DontBeDics #EdStack #election2020 #dicks @dickssportingss https://t.co/tuF2ybe3LH

— The Truth About Guns (@guntruth) October 25, 2019