Major companies are preparing for former President Donald Trump's return as Republican voters appear certain to give him a third shot at the White House.
Business leaders are fleeing the former president's crosshairs after President Trump scored important victories in Iowa and New Hampshire over former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, a favorite choice of some major businesspeople. seems to be enthusiastic about it.
“Most senior businessmen I talk to can't stand the guy. They just realize he's a huge danger to the country,” said University of Southern California finance professor and Securities and Exchange Commissioner. said Larry Harris, the association's former chief economist.
“But no one speaks. If everyone doesn't act at the same time, those who show up will be quickly defeated.”
JPMorgan Chase & Co. CEO Jamie Dimon, who had called on business leaders to support Haley as recently as two months ago, spoke at a global conference in Davos, Switzerland, earlier this month. He attended an economic forum and praised President Trump's policies during his first term.
“Take a step back and be honest,” Dimon said. “He was right in some ways about NATO. He was right in some ways about immigration. He grew the economy very well. Trade, tax reform worked. He was right about parts of China. You were right.”
“I don't like what he said about Mexico, but he was right on some of these important issues,” he added.
Dimon also defended Trump's supporters and called on President Biden and Democrats to “grow up.”
“I mean, really, can you stop doing that and actually grow up and treat other people with respect and listen to their opinions a little bit?”
Stephen Schwartzman, chairman and CEO of investment firm Blackstone, also changed his view of the former president. The Republican mega-donor announced his stance against President Trump in November, saying, “It's time for the Republican Party to turn to a new generation of leadership.”
However, Schwartzman did not rule out the possibility of supporting the former president again at Davos.
When asked if he would support Trump in the election, he said, “I'm like, 'Let's see.'” “I'm not as far into the hypothetical world as you'd like me to be yet. And we'll see what happens. There are always surprises in these elections.”
Anthony Scaramucci, who briefly served as President Trump's White House communications director and has since become a frequent critic of the former president, accused Wall Street of being “basically indifferent” to the 2024 election.
“I think they generally view Donald Trump as benign or somewhat beneficial to the economy and business,” he said in an interview with The Hill earlier this month.
Harris suggested that most business leaders don't want to suffer by facing President Trump alone.
“I mean, look what happened to Disney [former Republican presidential candidate and Gov. Ron] “DeSantis in Florida, and DeSantis didn't have as much power as Trump,” he added.
Trump, who defeated Haley by a narrower-than-expected margin in New Hampshire, warned Truth Social that donors who support the former U.N. ambassador will be “forever banned from the MAGA camp.”
“When I ran for office and won, I noticed that the losing candidates' donors immediately came to me and wanted to help. “This is the norm in politics, but it doesn't apply to me anymore,” he said.
“We don't want them, we won't accept them, and we always will, because we put America first!” Trump added.
The former president also has a history of publicly slamming business leaders, particularly on social media.
Shortly after being elected president in 2016, he called on the federal government to cancel Boeing's order for an improved Air Force One, calling the project's costs “out of control” in a Twitter post. I requested that.
In late 2018 and early 2019, President Trump repeatedly criticized General Motors CEO Mary Barra, accusing General Motors of cutting 15,000 jobs and closing five plants. It also threatened to cut the company's electric vehicle subsidies after announcing the plan.
He also called for a boycott of Goodyear after the company banned employees from wearing MAGA wear in 2020.
While some companies may benefit from potential tax reform and deregulation efforts under the former president, business experts say President Trump's re-election could pose risks for large companies. suggested that there is.
The Trump era “turned out to be anything but stable,” said Daniel Alpert, managing partner at investment firm Westwood Capital.
“We must always remember that business interests are actually motivated by stability. That means price stability, political stability, consumer demand, stability of all kinds, all forms of stability. It's stable, because it allows companies to plan and make profits,'' Alpert said.
Andrew Loquay, senior research analyst at Beacon Policy Advisors, also said the business community will need to consider a return to President Trump's protectionist approach to trade during his second term.
“In his second term, I expect Mr. Trump to take his America First policies to the next level,” Roquey told The Hill. “He is calling for a universal 10% tariff on imports from all countries, which would significantly withdraw the United States from the global economy.”
But some companies, such as domestic manufacturers, have previously benefited from Trump's tariff policies and are “pretty enthusiastic about the idea of increased protectionism,” Alpert said.
He added that highly regulated industries are also likely to support the more “laissez-faire” approach to regulation favored by the incoming Trump administration.
Roquei also said that given the provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act are set to expire in 2025, increasing the likelihood of Republican control, Republicans will be able to take unified control of the government under the second Trump administration. He also pointed out that the entire business community would welcome the possibility of doing so. Further personal and corporate tax cuts.
“I don't think there's a consensus on what will ultimately happen here because there are so many potential deployments and moves that could affect the outcome between now and the general election. Because there is a call out,” Alpert said.
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