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Trump Warns Walmart: "EAT THE TARIFFS" and "I'll Be Watching!" [1]
['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.']
Date: 2025-05-17
A couple of days ago, Walmart announced that, due to the tariffs that still remain on Chinese imports (30% minimum) even after Trump caved in to Xi, they will have to raise their prices: Walmart warns it will raise prices because of tariffs:
Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, said President Donald Trump’s tariffs are “too high” and it will raise prices on some items as Trump’s global trade war increases the company’s costs. “We will do our best to keep our prices as low as possible. But given the magnitude of the tariffs, even at the reduced levels announced this week, we aren’t able to absorb all the pressure given the reality of narrow retail margins,” Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said Thursday on an earnings call. “The higher tariffs will result in higher prices,” he said.
At that moment, Trump was still in the Middle East, getting his . . . ego . . . stroked. But once back home, he wasted no time in warning Walmart they’d better not try it. Trump Fumes After Walmart Cites His Policies For Price Hikes: 'STOP Trying To Blame Tariffs':
On Saturday, Trump railed against Walmart’s probable price increases on his Truth Social platform. “Walmart should STOP trying to blame Tariffs as the reason for raising prices throughout the chain,” he wrote. “Walmart made BILLIONS OF DOLLARS last year, far more than expected.” He continued, “Between Walmart and China they should, as is said, ‘EAT THE TARIFFS,’ and not charge valued customers ANYTHING. I’ll be watching, and so will your customers!!!”
HOWEVER . . . by ordering Walmart to “eat the tariffs,” Trump accidentally admitted that it will be Americans, not the foreign countries, that will pay those tariff bills. In previous rants, Trump tried to hide that truth, particularly when he ordered Amazon not to include the cost of the tariffs in its price breakdown.
The Trump administration simply does not want Americans to find out just how clumsy, how inept, how fundamentally stupid Trump’s tariff policy is. The same adjectives apply to everything else the administration is doing, but it’s harder to hide rising prices from the public, so Trump wants retailers to pretend prices aren’t going to rise because of his tariffs.
Amazon backed down, saying that the tariff notice was never planned. Walmart doesn’t have that excuse; the CEO spelled it out in so many words. And by saying “I’ll be watching!”, Trump is blatantly threatening to turn his weaponized DOJ on Walmart, much as he threatened Bruce Springsteen for telling the truth about him..
Walmart, however, has a lot of resources with which to fight back. Even more, they are often the only source of supply for much of Trump’s base. If I were Walmart, I would already be working on a campaign to inoculate the company from the Wrath of Trump and get their customers on their side.
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