
President Donald Trump has confirmed that Amazon founder Jeff Bezos reversed a plan to display tariff costs on product listings following a personal phone call between the two — a move that has drawn sharp criticism and renewed concerns about the tech industry’s growing alignment with the Trump administration.
The president made the revelation during a wide-ranging interview on NBC’s Meet the Press, where he told host Kristen Welker that Bezos immediately agreed not to go ahead with the plan after they spoke.
“He said, ‘Well, I don’t want to do that,’ and he took it off immediately,” Trump said. “He’s just a very nice guy. We have a relationship.”
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The reversal, which followed a report from Punchbowl News that Amazon was preparing to start listing import tariff costs beside product prices, has triggered a backlash from critics who see it as a clear example of political intimidation shaping corporate decisions. Amazon denied the report at the time, saying the idea had only been floated internally by one team and had not been approved.
However, Trump’s account, and the fact that Bezos reportedly gave in without public resistance, have raised alarms in some quarters.
Many have accused the billionaire of pandering to the president and caving to pressure, with some describing his U-turn as “cowardly” and emblematic of what they see as Trump’s tightening grip over the tech industry. The incident has renewed claims that many of Silicon Valley’s most powerful figures — once seen as adversaries to Trump — are now falling in line.
The episode has also reignited scrutiny over how major tech CEOs, including Bezos and Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, have sought to repair relations with Trump since his reelection victory in November. Both men were previously in Trump’s political crosshairs — Bezos, frequently the target of presidential tirades over his ownership of The Washington Post; Zuckerberg, criticized over alleged censorship on Facebook. But since Trump’s return to power, both men have taken steps to reconcile. Several tech executives who once kept their distance, including Bezos and Zuckerberg, contributed millions of dollars to the president’s second inauguration, signaling a shift in posture.
For Trump, the optics of the tariff debate are critical. His administration has imposed a sweeping 10% baseline tariff on imports from most countries and a punishing 145% tariff on Chinese goods — part of a broader effort he claims is aimed at revitalizing U.S. industry and punishing unfair trade practices. However, the impact on consumers has been significant. Since the tariffs went into effect, prices have surged on a wide range of goods sold on platforms like Amazon, including electronics, clothing, and household items.
Amazon, in its most recent earnings report, disclosed a $1 billion one-time charge attributed to tariffs and customer returns. Meanwhile, Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index shows that Bezos’s net worth has plunged by more than $30 billion since January — from $245 billion at the start of Trump’s second term to $212 billion as of May 5. That drop reflects, in part, the company’s financial exposure to Trump’s trade policies.
Despite this, the administration has worked aggressively to conceal the domestic impact of the tariffs. The White House openly condemned Amazon’s reported plan to make tariff costs more transparent to consumers, with press secretary Karoline Leavitt describing it as “a hostile and political act” during a briefing last week. By displaying the extra charges, Amazon could have undermined Trump’s efforts to conceal the inflationary consequences of his trade policies on consumers.
Trump, however, remains unapologetic. Asked whether he would call other CEOs who make decisions he disagrees with, the president said, “I’ll always call people if I disagree with them.” When pressed on whether he was punishing companies for passing tariff costs to consumers, he replied, “I want them to build plants in the United States. That way, they don’t have any tariffs.”
Thus, the message the president is sending is: build at home or risk presidential pressure.
On Truth Social, Trump has lashed out at business leaders who question his tariff strategy. In a recent Easter post, he wrote, “THEY DON’T UNDERSTAND OR REALIZE THAT I AM THE GREATEST FRIEND THAT AMERICAN CAPITALISM HAS EVER HAD!” It’s a line meant to reassure his base and project confidence, but for many in the business world and beyond — the more enduring message may be the threat behind the smile.
With Bezos backing down, observers say the president has scored more than a policy win — he’s sent a message across corporate America: resist at your own peril.