Overview
- Speaking Tuesday at The Wall Street Journal’s Invest Live event in West Palm Beach, Ken Griffin said government dealings that “taste of favoritism” have left CEOs disillusioned.
- Griffin alleged the administration has made choices “very, very enriching” to families of officials and referenced prior reporting about an Abu Dhabi investor taking a large stake in a Trump‑family cryptocurrency venture.
- He argued that corporate leaders resent feeling they must “suck up” to successive administrations and that social media boycotts have made CEOs wary of speaking on political issues.
- Reiterating broader concerns about government picking winners, Griffin criticized tariff carve‑outs he associated with Apple and objected to reported chip‑sale arrangements involving Nvidia and AMD in China that he said blur regulation and favoritism.
- The White House, through spokesman Kush Desai, rejected Griffin’s criticism as it emphasized the president’s pro‑business approach and said decisions are guided by the best interest of the American people; Griffin is a major Republican donor who spent more than $100 million in 2024.