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President Donald Trump said on Sunday that business leaders who oppose his reciprocal tariffs do not appreciate what he is doing for them.
“THE BUSINESSMEN WHO CRITICIZE TARIFFS ARE BAD AT BUSINESS, BUT REALLY BAD AT POLITICS,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on Easter Sunday.
“THEY DON’T UNDERSTAND OR REALIZE THAT I AM THE GREATEST FRIEND THAT AMERICAN CAPITALISM HAS EVER HAD!” Trump added.
Trump announced sweeping tariffs on more than 180 countries on April 2.
A baseline rate of 10% went into effect on April 5, while a higher set of tariffs that varied by country took effect on April 9 before Trump announced a 90-day pause on the same day. Trump’s tariffs triggered a massive market sell-off.
Trump did not include any names in his Truth Social post on Sunday, but several prominent entrepreneurs and executives have publicly criticized Trump’s decision to impose tariffs on US trading partners.
JPMorgan’s CEO Jamie Dimon told the Financial Times in an interview published Tuesday that the uncertainty created by Trump’s tariffs was challenging America’s reputation as a “haven.”
“I am not worried about the markets as much as I am about keeping the Western world together, free and safe for democracy,” Dimon told the FT.
“And that, to me, means you want to strengthen the economic relationships. If there’s unfairness, deal with it. But yeah, we should be careful. I don’t think anyone should assume they have a divine right to success, and therefore, don’t worry about it,” Dimon added.
Earlier, on April 9, Dimon said in an interview with Fox Business that a recession is a “likely outcome” with Trump’s tariffs. Trump said in a Truth Social post, hours before announcing a 90-day pause on tariffs, that he had watched Dimon’s interview.
Dimon isn’t the only business leader who has warned of the risks that Trump’s tariffs could have on the economy.
“Shark Tank” star Mark Cuban has repeatedly panned Trump’s tariffs. On April 2, the day Trump announced his sweeping tariffs, Cuban wrote on Bluesky that people should ‘buy lots of consumables” now before prices go up.
“Even if it’s made in the USA, they will jack up the price and blame it on tariffs,” Cuban wrote.
Then, on April 9, hours before Trump rolled back his tariffs, Cuban said businesses probably reacted to the tariffs by cutting jobs to save costs.
“What some people aren’t factoring into their analysis is the reality that companies were buying tons of inventory to beat the tariffs. That’s cash taken from being able to invest or hire,” Cuban wrote in a post on Bluesky.
Elon Musk, one of Trump’s biggest backers, also broke with the administration’s position on tariffs. The Tesla and SpaceX CEO called for a “free trade zone” between Europe and the US and slammed Trump’s top trade advisor, Peter Navarro, after Trump’s tariff announcement.
Elon Musk’s younger brother, Kimbal Musk, was more pointed in his criticisms of Trump’s tariffs.
“Through his tariff strategy, Trump has implemented a structural, permanent tax on the American consumer,” Kimbal Musk wrote in an X post on April 7.
The White House did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
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