President Donald Trump made a furious phone call to Jeff Bezos to complain after hearing that Amazon was planning to display the extra cost being passed onto consumers as a result of U.S tariffs on some products on its website.
The president gave Bezos an earful after being told about the move by a senior White House official, reported CNN.
Minutes after the call, Amazon released a statement insisting the addition was never planned for the main Amazon site, but it was considered for the budget spin-off Amazon Haul, which sells products under $20.
An Amazon spokesperson followed up with a revised statement to CNN claiming: “This was never approved and not going to happen.”
The debacle first came to light at a White House briefing on Tuesday morning when Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt hit back aggressively over a report that Amazon was considering displaying the added tariff costs on its site.
Scoop: Trump called Amazon founder Jeff Bezos Tuesday morning to complain about reports that his company was considering displaying the cost U.S. tariffs next to prices for certain products on its website, two senior White House officials told @CNN
— Alayna Treene (@alaynatreene) April 29, 2025
Leavitt said she had spoken to the president about the issue and called Amazon’s purported move a “hostile and political act.”
Punchbowl News first reported that Amazon would soon “display how much of an item’s cost is derived from tariffs—right next to the product’s total listed price.” The comparison would have shown consumers how the price was affected by Trump’s 145 percent tariff on China and the 10 percent he is levying on most other countries.
A reporter from the outlet had been given the specially designated new media seat in the briefing and asked the first question.
After learning about the report, Trump picked up the phone and took up the matter with Bezos directly. The Amazon boss is a regular visitor to the West Wing and was at the inauguration in January after Amazon contributed $1 million to the president’s inaugural fund. “Of course he was p–sed. Why should a multibillion dollar company pass off costs to consumers?” a White House aide told CNN.
Leavitt also pointed to a 2021 Reuters article about an alleged tie between Amazon and “a Chinese propaganda arm.”
She claimed it was “another reason why Americans should buy American. It’s another reason why we are onshoring critical supply chains here at home, to shore up our own critical supply chain and boost our own manufacturing here.”
The dig prompted Republican Senator Josh Hawley to repost Punchbowl’s X message promoting the story and comment: “@Amazon finally admits most of its products come from China,” with a laughing emoji.
.@Amazon finally admits most of its products come from China 😂 https://t.co/GmYxGrJa5j
— Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) April 29, 2025
First Lady Melania Trump will have her own reasons for hoping there was a quick fix to the “misunderstanding”. She is currently making a $40 million documentary with Amazon.
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