Is corporate America too scared to criticise Donald Trump? The Economist’s editor-in-chief, @zannymb, puts that question to the boss of one of the world's biggest banks. When asked whether there is a climate of fear in America, Jamie Dimon, the CEO of JPMorgan Chase, says “I… pic.twitter.com/E7WCO2LzUC
— The Economist (@TheEconomist) January 22, 2026
Is corporate America too scared to criticise Donald Trump? The Economist’s editor-in-chief, @zannymb, puts that question to the boss of one of the world’s biggest banks.
When asked whether there is a climate of fear in America, Jamie Dimon, the CEO of JPMorgan Chase, says “I think that’s clear”.
Tim O’Brien at Bloomberg reports:
Trump sued one of the world’s largest banks, JPMorgan Chase & Co., and its chief executive officer, Jamie Dimon, on Thursday. He contended that he and his companies were illegally and unfairly barred from doing business with the bank for “woke” political reasons a few months after he left the White House in 2021.
[…]
Trump sued another financial institution, Capital One Financial Corp., for similar reasons last year, so a trend might be afoot. Personal animus may be at work here, too. Just a day before the lawsuit was filed, Dimon criticized Trump’s plans to cap credit-card interest rates as an “economic disaster” during an interview at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
Dimon also said he would have approached negotiations with Europe in a “more polite” fashion than the president. After praising Trump for enforcing tighter immigration standards at the US’ southern border, Dimon also ripped the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency’s recent thuggery in Minneapolis, where an agent killed a US citizen, Renee Good. Videos of other violent encounters there have gone viral. “I don’t like what I’m seeing with five grown men beating up little women,” Dimon said.
I don’t think there’s any doubt what this is all about do you? Dimon criticized the man-baby so he decided to sue him. That’s as predictable as the sun coming up in the morning.
Trump and Dimon have traded barbs in the past. “I’m as tough as he is, I’m smarter than he is,” Dimon said of Trump at an event in 2018. “He could punch me all he wants, it wouldn’t work with me. I’d fight right back.” Dimon also noted that “this wealthy New Yorker actually earned his money. It wasn’t a gift from daddy.” Trump took to social media to respond, observing that Dimon could never cut it as president because “he doesn’t have the aptitude or ‘smarts’ & is a poor public speaker & nervous mess – otherwise he is wonderful.”
In his first term Trump would have just tweeted an insult. Now he sues. I would expect that if he gets really mad he’ll sic the IRS or the DOJ on him.
O’Brien says what we’re all thinking:
Other business leaders should take a cue from Dimon and start standing up for themselves more forcefully and openly. They all get paid quite well for being leaders, after all, and we are living in an era when public courage is essential. Trump’s second term has been a revenge tour as much as anything else. When he disrupts or threatens corporate operations with unhinged policies and proclamations — or lawsuits — rooted in personal grievances, bravado or political expediency, CEOs would do well to push back. Trump’s trampling of core American values — including the rule of law and respect for our global alliances — should inspire them as well.
It should but so far, it’s very rare. O’Brien goes into the details of the case which sounds very weak and probably won’t go anywhere. It’s just the latest in a string of nuisance suits Trump has filed. I guess now that he’s grifted a couple billion as president he figures he has plenty of money to spend on revenge:
The Florida lawyer representing Trump, Alejandro Brito, has also filed suits against Dow Jones & Co., News Corp., the New York Times Co., and the British Broadcasting Corp. seeking combined damages of $35 billion for allegedly defaming his client. The media companies have denied wrongdoing and said they are ready to go to court. Still, Trump has turned flimsy or ludicrous suits into a lucrative cottage industry that has supplemented his presidential salary.
The Supreme Court gave him immunity from criminal prosecution for his “official duties” which has made him feel invulnerable. He’s now using the criminal law and the civil courts with abandon to wreak revenge on his enemies. How’s that working out for us?