Jeb Bush takes Uber to San Francisco startup

SAN FRANCISCO (KTVU) - Republican candidate for President Jeb Bush stopped by San Francisco on Thursday morning, on a swing through the Bay Area.

On Ninth Street, an Uber delivered Jeb Bush to Thumbtack, a tech company that connects people with contractors that can do work for them.

Bush toured the office, and then talked with staff. "I'm honored to be your first presidential candidate," said Bush to a packed room.

The former Florida Governor fielded some pointed questions. "Currently, women make 79 cents for every dollar a man makes. If you're elected president, will you work to fix this? And if so, how," asked female software engineer, Maddie Mirzoeff.

Bush responded by saying, "So, wages should be equal. And there are laws to make it so. And they should be enforced."

The company head of product, Jake Poses, who said he is gay, asked, "In most states, including your home state, I could have been denied employment by a company like Thumbtack for being gay. Do you think that's good for Americans and fair to me?"

Bush said, "No, I don't think you should be discriminated because of your sexual orientation. Period. Over and out."

But Bush added Christian business owners who oppose gay marriage should be allowed to refuse that kind of service. "You should not be fined. You should not have to close your business down."

The people who asked those questions were left unsatisfied. "He didn't say anything about how he would fix it. Or anything he would do to make sure this was working," said Mirzoeff. Poses added, "I don't think he has that much conviction in his answer because he said oh, we should leave it to the states."

Company officials said they aren't sure why the Bush campaign picked Thumbtack. But this company deals with 200,000 small businesses every month, and that's a perspective that's important to all presidential candidates. "The government of the future needs to look more like Thumbtack, to be honest with you. Lower cost. Higher quality. Focused on outcomes," said Bush.

Bush later spoke with the media. Regarding the hot button Sanctuary City issue and the killing of Kate Steinle, he said San Francisco should be penalized for not cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. "Then they shouldn't take federal law enforcement money. And there should be a prohibition on that."

Company officials appreciated Bush stopping here. "He clearly spoke from an experienced point of view. That he had thought hard about these issues as governor," said CEO and co-founder, Marco Zappacosta.

Bush wrapped up the event then hopped into another Uber, heading to another campaign event in Woodside.