Howard Schultz flips script, warns Democrats their nominee could be ‘spoiler’

Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz, battling Democratic criticism that he'd be a "spoiler" should he launch an independent bid for president, urged the party to consider the possibility that their own nominee could play such a role.

Schultz, who said last month he was considering running for president, suggested Tuesday in a post on Medium that Democrats could sabotage their own chances of ousting President Trump from the White House in 2020 by nominating a candidate too far to the left.

“The stakes are too high to cross our fingers and hope the Democratic Party nominates a moderate who can win over enough independents and disaffected Republicans, and even fellow Democrats, to defeat Trump next year,” Schultz wrote. “That any opponent can oust Trump, no matter how far to the radical left they are, is a fallacy.”

He added: “Those so concerned about a centrist independent being a spoiler should perhaps ask another question: Will the eventual Democratic nominee be the party’s own version of a spoiler?”

Schultz, a 65-year-old Seattle billionaire who launched a tour last month to promote his latest book, "From the Ground Up: A Journey to Reimagine the Promise of America," has been the subject of presidential speculation ever since saying when he retired from Starbucks last June that his future could include "public service."