Amazon founder Jeff Bezos arrives for his meeting with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson at the UK diplomatic residence in New York City, Sept. 20, 2021.
Michael M. Santiago | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos spoke optimistically of President-elect Donald Trump Wednesday at The New York Times’ DealBook Summit, saying he expects a more friendly regulatory environment in the upcoming administration.
“I’m actually very optimistic this time around,” Bezos said on stage. “He seems to have a lot of energy around reducing regulation. If I can help do that, I’m going to help him.”
Bezos’ comments struck a cheerful tone despite Trump publicly lambasting the billionaire during his first term. Trump repeatedly attacked Bezos and his companies, Amazon and The Washington Post, accusing them of dodging taxes or publishing “fake news,” among other things. Trump also repeatedly pointed the finger at Amazon for its use of the U.S. Postal Service, claiming the company contributed to the post office’s demise.
In 2019, Amazon blamed Trump’s “behind-the-scenes attacks” against the company for its loss of a multibillion-dollar Department of Defense contract, then called JEDI.
Prior to the 2016 election, Bezos criticized Trump’s behavior, saying it “erodes our democracy.” He offered to shoot Trump into space after the then-Republican candidate attacked Bezos for using the Post as a “tax shelter.”
However, looking back on the first transition to Trump eight years ago, Bezos expressed optimism then, too. Bezos was one of a number of major tech leaders, along with top execs from Alphabet, Apple, Facebook and others, who trekked to Trump Tower for a meeting with Trump in December 2016. During the campaign, Trump issued a number of barbs directed at Bezos and his businesses, but at the meeting both men appeared nothing but complimentary.
“I found today’s meeting with the president-elect, his transition team, and tech leaders to be very productive,” Bezos said. “I shared the view that the administration should make innovation one of its key pillars, which would create a huge number of jobs across the whole country, in all sectors, not just tech—agriculture, infrastructure, manufacturing—everywhere.”
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