CEOs have been forced to swallow their tongues when discussing former president Donald Trump because they’re afraid he might retaliate against them, according to former American Express CEO Ken Chenault.
“The fear is real,” Chenault told Bloomberg in a lengthy article detailing Trump’s economic policies.
Chenault, who is now the chairman of venture capital firm General Catalyst, alleged corporate leaders were afraid Trump would hit back at them if they said anything negative about him.
“People are staying on the sidelines because they greatly fear that there will be retribution,” Chenault said.
Chenault did not respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for General Catalyst said Chenault was speaking as a private citizen. “General Catalyst does not endorse any presidential candidate,” they said in an emailed statement. “As a company, we will work with any presidential administration.”
Over the course of the presidential campaign Trump has repeatedly stated he would look to strike back at adversaries should he win the White House. On several occasions he has used the word “retribution,” just as Chenault did. In an interview with the television host Dr. Phil, shortly after he was convicted of 34 felony counts over financial fraud his 2016 campaign committed in connection to hush money payments made to the pornstar Stormy Daniels, Trump extolled the idea of vengeance. “Sometimes revenge can be justified,” Trump said.
The Trump campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
Most of Trump’s threats have been reserved for political opponents, whom he has said he would have “every right” to prosecute. Though he has had no shortage of antipathy for certain business leaders as well. In particular, he has declared his dislike for Silicon Valley executives, with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Amazon founder and executive chair Jeff Bezos among his favorite targets. Zuckerberg has been a frequent recipient of his ire, since Meta’s decision to ban the former president from Facebook and Instagram after a mob of his supporters stormed the capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Meta lifted the ban in February 2023.
That’s done little to patch up the relationship in Trump’s eyes. Last week, the Republican nominee labeled Zuckerberg an “Election Fraudster,” baselessly accusing the Meta CEO of rigging U.S. elections and threatening to jail him. “DON'T DO IT! ZUCKERBUCKS, be careful!" Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.
Meanwhile, Bezos earned the typically Trumpian moniker of “Jeff Bozo” in a 2019 post on X (then Twitter). The problems between the two started when Bezos opposed Trump’s 2017 immigration ban on Muslim-majority countries. Bezos’ ownership of the Washington Post, whose coverage of his administration Trump regularly took issue with, also didn’t help the tech billionaire share in the former president’s good graces.
It’s not just the personal enmities and threats of political retaliation (which is worrying in and of itself) corporate leaders are also worried about the substance of Trump’s economic policies. On more than one occasion, Trump has made it known he’d like to impose 60% tariffs on any Chinese products and 10% tariffs on all other foreign goods. For the top executives of Fortune 500 companies, the idea of paying 10% more on any product their sprawling company might need from a different country could spell extreme financial distress. Economists widely expect Trump’s policies would be inflationary should he succeed in implementing them. All of his policies are expected Trump allies also floated a plan reducing the Federal Reserve’s independence, which business leaders balked at, according to the Wall Street Journal.
In recent weeks, Yale professor Jeffery Sonnenfeld, who is well connected with top CEOs, has taken Trump to task for what he deems are policies that would harm U.S. businesses. “These Trump positions have more in common with Karl Marx than Adam Smith,” Sonnenfeld wrote in a New York Times op-ed published last month.
Though, many CEOs seem to believe a second Trump presidency is likely. As such they’ve made the traditional pilgrimage executives often do to leading presidential candidates. Although a June meeting between former president Donald Trump and a group of top CEOs left both parties with dueling impressions. The CEOs (anonymously) told their advisers Trump was “remarkably meandering” and “couldn’t keep a straight thought,” according to CNBC.
Meanwhile, Trump told Bloomberg the meeting was a “lovefest” where he was not just feted but praised, lauded, and adored by corporate leaders.
