Overview

• Speaking to CNBC, Griffin condemned corporate deals for tariff exemptions as government picking winners and warned that "all of us lose."
• He described the queue of firms seeking special treatment at the White House as "nauseating" and criticized cronyism risks for business and policy.
• His remarks follow Trump’s proposal for a 100% tariff on semiconductor imports with exemptions for companies pledging U.S. investment.
• Coverage has noted Apple’s multibillion-dollar U.S. investment plans and reported deals allowing Nvidia and AMD to sell some chips to China under a 15% revenue-sharing condition.
• Griffin argued tariffs operate like a national sales tax that burdens lower-income households more and cautioned companies that courting favor now could backfire with future administrations.