Ex-Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz teases possible presidential run with nationwide book tour

Howard Schultz really looks like he's brewing up a presidential run.

The former Starbucks CEO has long been eyed as a potential Democratic candidate for 2020, and rumors only intensified when he stepped down from the company in June. Now, he's launching a nationwide book tour focused on everything but coffee, and Axios suggests it could be Schultz's first sip of political tea.

Schultz has previously authored and toured with his Starbucks-centric book Onward, published in 2011. But his forthcoming book, From the Ground Up: A Journey to Reimagine the Promise of America "isn't the coffee story," as Axios puts it. It'll start with Schultz's description of growing up in a Brooklyn housing project, and then discuss how he led Starbucks while "providing healthcare and stock ownership to part-time workers" and "speaking out about controversial topics like race and refugees," per Schultz's website.

But wait, the political undertones don't stop there. Schultz will apparently tear down big businesses' ignorance of employee welfare in favor of cutting costs, and encourage government and businesses to collaborate as they try to better America. Schultz's book tour will also make stops "in states that could help in a possible Democratic presidential run," Axios says.

The biggest obstacle standing in Schultz's way? Michael Bloomberg, Axios suggests. The fellow businessman and centrist also may run as a Democrat in 2020, and with the progressive left on the rise, one middle-of-the-road candidate might be more than enough.