Tech

Boycotting Uber is boosting the fortunes of billionaire Trump advisor Carl Icahn

Uber faces heat for operating during taxi strike
VIDEO0:4000:40
Uber faces heat for operating during taxi strike

Over the weekend, activists and celebrities began using Twitter to urge a boycott of Uber using the hashtag #DeleteUber

The movement started after the New York Taxi Workers Alliance called for a temporary halt to rides heading to John F. Kennedy airport as a gesture of solidarity with visitors who were held there after Trump's sudden order to restrict entry from seven predominantly Muslim countries. 

Uber continued to send drivers to JFK and announced it would not charge surge pricing:

No surge from Uber. 

Despite Uber's insistence it was not trying to break the taxi strike and CEO Travis Kalanick's opposition to the travel ban, the movement continued into Monday morning, with critics making a big deal of Kalanick's role on Trump's Economic Advisory Board. 

Meanwhile, competitor Lyft donated $1 million to the ACLU, which is fighting Trump's travel ban in court. For a lot of people, that was a clear reason to delete Uber and install Lyft instead:

Delete Uber, install Lyft.

Now Lyft usage is surging, and it's passed Uber in daily downloads, according to TechCrunch.

But the #DeleteUber crew seems to have missed Lyft's own ties to the Trump administration.

In 2015, financier Carl Icahn made a $100 million investment into Lyft. His interests are represented on its board of directors through John Christodoro of Icahn Capital.

Icahn did a lot more than Kalanick to help get Trump elected. He was an early and vocal supporter of Trump during the campaign, claiming that the businessman would be much better for the economy than Hillary Clinton, and Trump appointed Icahn as a special advisor on regulation in December.

Icahn isn't the only Trump advisor with a connection to Lyft. Founders Fund, the venture capital firm founded by Trump advisor Peter Thiel, led Lyft's B round and invested in the next two rounds as well. 

A Lyft spokeperson told CNBC, "We don't always agree with our investors and aren't afraid to say so. We do respect their right, and that of every American, to freedom of expression."

Kalanick has made no secret of his libertarian political views, which are more closely aligned with Republicans. But if activists are upset about his support of Trump, boycotting Uber for Lyft isn't necessarily the solution. 

Maybe they should take a taxi instead.