U.S. Congressman Matt Gaetz, Donald Trump Jr. and PublicSquare CEO Michael Seifert congratulated John Blackrock, a Panhandle U.S. Army veteran and co-founder of John Candor, a PublicSquare retailer specializing in handcrafted leather products. PublicSquare awards a $1,000 grant to a participating small business in each city where their town hall series is hosted, and Blackrock’s company was selected as recipient for the Pensacola event. Photo by Romi White.
Hundreds queued up yesterday outside Palafox Wharf Waterfront ahead of a PublicSquare Town Hall featuring U.S. Congressman Matt Gaetz and Donald Trump Jr., who participated in a panel discussion on the U.S. economy and the potential to harness purchasing power through the PublicSquare platform.
PublicSquare Chairman and CEO Michael Seifert welcomed the standing-room-only crowd gathered inside the historic 1880 venue, which is owned by PublicSquare patron Peter McDavid, whose family is the namesake of the McDavid community in north Escambia County.
Seifert opened by describing the PublicSquare marketplace as an alternative for consumers frustrated by “woke” corporations, pointing out Bud Light’s 2023 promotion campaign, which utilized a transgender influencer and resulted in a boycott.
Pensacola CPA Chris Kelly attended the event with his wife, Amy, a Holley-Navarre Primary teacher. He told South Santa Rosa News that “Conservatives, Democrats, and even liberal-minded Americans who are fed up with the corporate giants that have inserted themselves into American politics are beginning to see the potential of shifting their dollars to like-minded small businesses that are the backbone of America.”
The audience cheered loudly when Seifert introduced Trump Jr and Gaetz, and the trio engaged in a panel discussion about the decline of the American economy under the Biden Administration, the potential for positive change with the upcoming 2024 elections, and the purchasing power of Conservatives, which Seifert said has a $7 trillion value.
“You take away that money that they’ve been using to fund against you, to weaponize against you each and every day. The causes that you can’t stand that they’re gladly donating to,” said Trump Jr.
Gaetz said Trump Jr recently used the PublicSquare app when they were selecting a restaurant for a group dinner in Washington, D.C. “We knew we were going to go somewhere where we weren’t going to be harassed, where we could have a nice experience, really it’s a community you guys are creating,” Gaetz said.
Currently PublicSquare has around 1.6 million consumers and 75,000 businesses from a variety of different industries. For more information visit http://www.publicsquare.com.
