The Biden campaign has faced a backlash after showing an advertisement depicting a Michigan investor and tech CEO as a struggling bar owner.
The add posted on Youtube last Thursday, which then aired on CBS during NFL games on Sunday, features Joe Malcoun, a co-owner of The Blind Pig bar - once a popular place in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
In the ad, Malcoun blames Donald Trump's coronavirus response for the bar's economic downturn.
“For 50 years, The Blind Pig has been open and crowded – but right now it’s an empty room. This is the reality of Trump’s COVID response,” he said.
What the ad doesn't say, however, is that Malcoun is also a prominent "angel investor" in local tech companies and served as CEO of Nutshell, a customer relationship management software company, so he is unlikely to face economic ruin due to the bar's downturn.
After inheriting money from his wife's grandfather, Malcoun founded CKM Capital Partners in 2013 and became an investor in local tech companies, according to an 2018 interview.
Moreover, Malcoun supported Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's stay-at-home orders that kept businesses shuttered longer. While the initial coronavirus-related state of emergency was set to end on 30 April, Whitmer used her executive powers to extend it.
Malcoun also donated $5,000 to Biden campaign in July, according to Federal Election Commission data.