Delta Just Doubled Down on Its Decision to Cut Ties With the NRA [View all]

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http://time.com/5182755/delta-airlines-nra-atlanta-georgia/


By ARIC JENKINS 11:03 AM EST

Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian issued a company-wide memo Friday addressing the recent fallout between the carrier and the National Rifle Association in the wake of the deadly Parkland, Fla. school shooting.

Bastian, who opted to end Delta’s discount program for NRA members as online petitions urged companies to boycott the group, said in the memo sent to employees that Delta was not trying to take sides in the ongoing gun control debate. But Bastian said the Georgia-based company stands by its decision to cut ties with the NRA despite backlash from state lawmakers, who passed legislation in retaliation Thursday to kill tax exemptions on jet fuel Delta uses.

“Our decision was not made for economic gain and our values are not for sale,” Bastian wrote in the memo. “We are in the process of a review to end group discounts for any group of a politically divisive nature.”

Bastian also dismissed the possibility of Delta relocating its headquarters out of Atlanta — an option offered by governors in multiple states that approve of Delta’s stance, such as Washington and New York.

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