Fresh Feud Between White House and Amazon
Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, has accused Amazon of being hostile and politically motivated. According to a report by Punchbowl News, Amazon plans to display the exact cost of tariff-related price increases alongside its products. This move would make it clear to American consumers that they are bearing the cost of President Trump’s tariffs, not China, as the administration claims.
The report was shared with Amazon founder Jeff Bezos over the phone, according to three people familiar with the exchange. An Amazon spokesman said the company had considered a similar idea but only on part of its site, Amazon Haul, which competes with Temu, a Chinese retailer. Temu primarily ships directly to consumers and has begun displaying import charges to reflect the end of a customs loophole that had exempted low-priced items from tariffs.
White House Press Secretary’s Criticism
Ms. Leavitt criticized Amazon during a press briefing Tuesday morning, standing beside Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. She said she had just been talking on the phone with the president about the report. She also asked why Amazon hadn’t done such a thing when prices increased during the Biden administration due to inflation.
Ms. Leavitt said it was not a surprise coming from Amazon, as she held up a copy of a 2021 article from Reuters with the headline, "Amazon partnered with China propaganda arm."
Trump’s Aggressive Tariffs
Mr. Trump’s aggressive tariffs on Chinese goods have sparked an escalating trade war, even as his administration has backed off its broader global levies amid negotiations with dozens of nations on new trade deals.
Ms. Leavitt’s attack on Amazon was particularly noteworthy because Mr. Bezos has recently gone to great lengths to curry favor with the White House. Amazon donated $1 million to Mr. Trump’s inaugural fund, secured seats for Mr. Bezos and his bride-to-be in the Capitol Rotunda for the inauguration, and added multiple seasons of "The Apprentice" to its streaming inventory. The company also cut a deal with the Trump family to make a documentary about Melania Trump.
Bezos’ Changing Stance
Shortly before the election, Mr. Bezos quashed an editorial endorsing Kamala Harris for president in the newspaper he owns, the Washington Post. More recently, Amazon Prime added multiple seasons of "The Apprentice" to its streaming inventory. The company also cut a deal with the Trump family to make a documentary about Melania Trump.
In December, Mr. Bezos explained his Trump-ward turn while speaking at The New York Times DealBook conference. He said Mr. Trump seemed calmer and more confident, more settled, and very hopeful. He added that Mr. Trump seemed to have a lot of energy around reducing regulation.
When asked about his relationship with Mr. Bezos in a cover story in The Atlantic magazine published Monday, Mr. Trump said, "Hes 100 percent. Hes been great."
However, when Ms. Leavitt was asked Tuesday morning whether the Amazon mogul can still be considered a Trump supporter, given the latest report, she demurred. She said, "Look, I will not speak to the president’s relationships with Jeff Bezos, but I will tell you that this is certainly a hostile and political action by Amazon."
Reference : https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/29/us/politics/trump-amazon-tariffs-prices.html
