The nation’s top business leaders and senior Republicans will soon be forced to speak out against President Trump’s trade policies due to their effects on the economy, according to a pundit.
Scott Galloway, a New York University business professor and commentator, predicted a rising wave of dissent from corporate leaders and Republican figures against Trump’s escalating trade war.
Galloway said Trump’s sweeping tariffs are not only destabilizing the economy but could soon compel high-profile figures to speak out.
“I think the worm has turned,” Galloway told co-host Kara Swisher on Monday’s edition of their “Pivot” podcast.
“You’re about to see, I believe, some very high-profile business leaders and Republicans come out in the next week or two and say, ‘This is just bad.’ And they’re going to get a ton of attention,” he said.
A White House spokesperson pushed back on Galloway’s comments.
“Industry leaders have already responded to President Trump and his America First economic agenda of tariffs, deregulation, tax cuts, and domestic energy production with trillions in historic investment commitments,” White House spokesperson Kush Desai told The Post.
“Robust jobs reports and a March inflation report that showed a drop in prices for the first time in years further reinforce the business community’s confidence in President Trump.”
Steven Cheung, the White House communications director, told The Post: “Who is Scott Galloway?”
Galloway criticized the president’s approach to tariffs as well as his efforts to get universities to crack down on antisemitism as erratic and overly aggressive.
“Trump has decided to fight everyone all at once,” he said.
“Whether it’s Harvard or Kazakhstan, he’s just declared war on everyone. They’re going to be very creative and strike back.”
Swisher agreed, noting it “does feel like he declared war on everyone.”
Rather than targeting specific industries or countries in a strategic manner, Galloway argued, Trump’s tariff strategy is creating widespread uncertainty and backlash.
He likened the situation to a chaotic campaign lacking a coherent plan and warned that global players would not remain passive in the face of US aggression.
Galloway also emphasized the reputational cost that Trump’s rhetoric and policies are having on America’s standing in the world, both economically and morally.
“There’s been incalculable economic and moral damage here,” he said.
“Loss of brand equity and a loss of moral authority.”
Still, he expressed cautious optimism that public opinion — and more importantly, business leaders — will soon mobilize against what he described as harmful and anti-American policies.
“The school is about to rise up against the bullies,” he said.
He singled out Nike as an example of a brand that could take a powerful stand.
“The biggest opportunity right now in the commercial consumer world is for the CEO to weaponize their creativity and their agency and to come out against this bulls–t and say, ‘This is anti-American,’” Galloway said.
Galloway concluded with a dose of dark humor: “While you all claim he’s playing 4D chess, at this point we’re worried he’s going to start eating the pieces. This guy is making the stupidest decisions.”
Swisher responded: “I like your prediction. I hope it’s true.”