On his list of essential qualities in a president, Mark Cuban told Business Insider that he wants an open-minded head of state who will not be an “ideologue” during his term in office.
Following the four-day convention in Chicago, Cuban praised the Democratic candidate on social media, particularly for her message of strengthening the American middle class by supporting small business owners and entrepreneurs and by reducing the costs of health care, food and housing.
“Talking to stakeholders is the first step to understanding what makes the economy work or not work, from pricing to growth,” Cuban posted on X on Friday.
“She is pro-business. She is her own person. She is not an ideologue,” Cuban wrote of Harris.
Cuban was among the first supporters of Harris’ campaign after President Joe Biden dropped out on July 21, adding his name to a list of venture capitalists pledging their support for the vice president. The list has so far collected 820 signatures.
The billionaire company founder defended some of Harris’ economic plans, which include subsidies for first-time home buyers and a federal ban on price gouging.
He also said he appreciates how Harris is driving conversations about healthcare transparency and crypto regulation – both areas in which Cuban has some involvement with his online pharmacy and digital asset investments.
“Of course, the devil is in the details. But so far I like what I’ve heard,” Cuban previously told BI.
Trump vs Harris
Regarding Harris’ Republican opponent Donald Trump, Cuban sees a stark contrast.
“One of the things that sets KH apart from the Republican candidates is her confidence,” Cuban told BI. “She knows what she doesn’t know and is willing to listen to corporations, from the smallest corner yogurt shop to the giants of industry.”
On the X show, Cuban defended Harris against critics who point to a lack of concreteness in her economic agenda and pointed out that Trump has not yet made his political plans concrete either.
“We have to wait for the details of her policies, just as we wait for the details of Trump’s policies,” he wrote on August 18 in response to an X user. “The difference is that she has been in office for four weeks. When did Trump announce it?”
Although neither candidate has yet presented a comprehensive economic program, Cuban clearly prefers Harris’ rhetoric. He highlighted moments from Harris’ speech at the DNC in which she talked about bringing workers and small business owners together and criticized Trump’s vague plan to cool inflation.
Trump said in a speech Wednesday that his plan to fight inflation would include signing an executive order that “directs every Cabinet Secretary and every agency head to use every tool and authority at their disposal to fight inflation and rapidly reduce consumer prices.”
Cuban responded to X: “What voters are hearing: He’s going to give instructions to a group of unnamed bureaucrats and their agencies, talk to all the other unnamed bureaucrats and the thousands of bureaucrats who work for them, to defeat inflation in 100 days.”
On Friday, he followed up by running a poll on X, asking users which of two options was better: “Talk2 Gov Bureacrats,” referring to Trump’s message, or “Talk2 Business people,” referring to Harris’ message.
After the convention, Cuban said in a post on X on Friday that Harris is transforming her party.
“Kamala Harris does not follow Democratic Party policies. Kamala Harris defines her own policies and the Democratic Party follows her,” he wrote. “She is literally redefining the party.”
