GianCarlo Nardini, together with his brother Guido, owns the business, which was founded in 1952. The brothers are the third-generation owners of the family-owned restaurant.
GianCarlo Nardini's vulgar tweets against President Donald Trump and the Republican Party.
Many business owners make donations to political candidates or publicly endorse them, but GianCarlo has taken it a step further with aggressive and frequently vulgar statements against President Donald Trump and the Republican Party in general.
“And the ignorance of the cracker vote continues. Ignore the rest of the world,” he tweeted Feb. 28 from his personal account, referring to Trump voters. But even that was one of his more measured public statements.
He went on to insult Antonin Scalia, who is revered by many, likening the recently deceased Supreme Court justice to excrement. Nardini labeled Trump’s actions as similar to those of Adolf Hitler and repeatedly used a derogatory slang term in reference to him.
In addition to Nardini’s personal statements, the business itself used at least one of its social media platforms to promote partisan positions, albeit in less strident terms. Just prior to the Nov. 8 presidential election, the restaurant’s Facebook page featured a flattering photo of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton receiving a kiss from the late legendary Cubs broadcaster Harry Caray.
Recently, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Chris Kennedy was pictured on the account and identified as “governor-to-be."
The Chicago City Wire spoke with Guido Nardini regarding the business’s political postings.
“The benefits to posting are you can find and encourage new customers and soothe your soul,” he said.
When asked if such political advocacy affects their business, he declined to proceed with the interview.
Some owners and executives of national, well-known businesses have been embroiled in controversy over their public policy choices and relationships with politicians recently. Some have been rewarded for their stances and others penalized.
Brendan Eich, CEO of Mozilla, was forced out only days after taking the helm of the company that operates the Firefox internet browser. Users of the nonprofit’s product expressed outrage over Eich’s small donation to a petition effort to put the question of gay marriage on the ballot in California.
More recently, after meeting with President Trump, Under Armour CEO Kevin Plank was sternly condemned by NBA 2016 MVP Stephen Curry, one of the company’s own endorsers. Plank had met with the president to discuss the future of U.S. manufacturing, an important issue to the future of Under Armour, which produces most of its products in the United States.
In addition to Club Lago, two Chicago brewing companies declared their political views when they released anti-Trump beers this year.
Illuminated Brew Works named its new pale ale “Trumpty Dumpty” and introduced it at a Chicago bar,The Green Lady, earlier this year.
"The Green Lady's owner, Melani Domingues, has already voiced her displeasure about the new president, dropping MillerCoors products in December after the family that owns the brewery co-hosted a fundraiser for President Trump," Time Out reported.
Off Color Brewing has released a “Class War” brew with a high alcohol level.
“At 9.5 percent it should leave you well prepared for the brave new world we're heading into or at least blissfully despondent,” the brewer's website said.
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