Kenneth Cole

In December 1982, Kenneth Cole launched his company, Kenneth Cole Productions, with the debut of his ladies’ footwear. In the fall of 2000, he added the Kenneth Cole Women’s Collection. In 1985, he was one of the first in the fashion industry to take a public stand in the fight against HIV. Besides becoming a renowned fashion icon, Cole is also an international humanitarian. The company’s philosophy maintains, “What you stand for is more important than what you stand in” and “To be aware is more important than what you wear.”

ROBIN BRONK: If you had five minutes in the Oval Office with President Obama, what would you discuss with him? What issue would you like him to know about? 

Kenneth Cole: We know there are profound concerns today, specifically in regard to the economy and joblessness. He needs to better articulate where we were two and a half years ago, when he took office. He needs to communicate and take credit for what he has done as well as acknowledge what he hasn’t and why two and a half years ago, for example, most of our nation’s banks were questionably solvent, with many on the verge of collapsing, and just two and a half years ago, the entire automotive industry, and most of Detroit, for that matter, was questionably viable and on the verge of bankruptcy.

As bad as the economy is and as high as unemployment is, where would it have been absent the decisions his administration made and actions that were taken? Many also argue that universal healthcare is flawed and will cost us billions that we don’t have. But who is reminding them that this is, in fact, a landmark accomplishment that Democrats have talked about for decades? That although it has its flaws, that will be worked out over time, [and] effective 2013, 40 million Americans will finally have access to basic medical care that they had been deprived of. “ObamaCare” has been coined and become a weapon that has been used against him by every Republican in recent debates. I strongly believe the president should adopt and own the term “ObamaCare” and start using it to extol the merits of his landmark event, and the humanity that will come from it for so many deserving fellow Americans for generations to come.

RB: If you could give President Obama one piece of advice, what would that be?

KC: I would probably discuss the global HIV/AIDS pandemic. This is an extraordinary time in the history of this epidemic, with particularly important research breakthroughs in the last year. Research has revealed new prevention tools and infection rates are being driven down at a significant rate. We now have the first microbicide that can protect a woman from contracting HIV; a single pill when taken by men can prevent them from acquiring HIV; and when people living with HIV get treated earlier, we have learned they live healthier lives and the risk of them transmitting the virus to their partners is dramatically reduced. With the appropriate investment now, I would advise him, we can radically reshape this crisis. President Obama can seize this moment. He can make the end of AIDS in our lifetime part of his legacy and ours. 

RB: If you could ask President Obama one question, what would that be? 

KC: Do you really, in your heart, believe that any one of us has the right to sit in judgment of how any one of us chooses to define our relationship with another human being? Shouldn’t all Americans be entitled to basic human rights?

RB: What book would you offer to lend President Obama? Why? 

KC: The Democrats are from Mars, Republicans are from Venus — he needs to find a planet where we all speak the same language.

RB: If you were going to send the president to one place in the United States for one day, where would that be? Why? 

KC: I’d send him to a HELP USA residence for homeless veterans, so he could better understand the true implications and costs of not just sending our soldiers to war, but what happens to them, at increasing numbers, when we bring them home.

RB: Would you ever consider a political career? 

KC: I would not. I think that today, if one truly wants to serve their communities, they can do it more easily and effectively as a private person — without the tedious and intrusive oversight and burdensome regulations.

Bronk is a seasoned Capitol Hill strategist and advocate. She started her career at The Creative Coalition, a nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy group for the arts and entertainment industry, in July 1998. During her tenure as CEO, Bronk has taken The Creative Coalition from a New York-based entity to a national organization. www.thecreativecoalition.org