Trump is tightening the screws on corporate America — and CEOs are staying mum

['Maria Aspan', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Coauthors.Is-Layout-Flow', 'Class', 'Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus', 'Display Inline', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Avatar', 'Where Img', 'Height Auto Max-Width', 'Vertical-Align Bottom .Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Coauthors.Is-Layout-Flow .Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Avatar', 'Vertical-Align Middle .Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Avatar Is .Alignleft .Alignright'] TPR: The Public's Radio 2025-08-14 10:20:53

President Trump is exerting an unprecedented amount of control over the shape and future of U.S. business. (Mandel Ngan | AFP via Getty Images)Corporate America doesn’t want to fight with President Trump in public. By demanding a cut of a private company’s sales, in exchange for the right to do business, Trump is defying the traditionally Republican gospel of free-market capitalism. Trump taps conservative economist to lead statistics agency President Trump plans to tap an economist from the conservative Heritage Foundation to oversee the Bureau of Labor Statistics. U.S. markets are on a record-breaking tear, despite their April freak-out over the potential consequences of Trump’s tariffs.