"State capitalism. MAGA Marxism. Crony capitalism. Those are just some of the terms business and political commentators have used this year to describe how President Trump's policies are reshaping U.S. free-market capitalism. There are some differences in definition but all of these terms underline how dramatically Trump has blurred the boundaries between business and government, to an extent that could have long-term consequences for the U.S. economy and the country's global standing."
""When the American government appears to favor a company over rival companies, that distorts the marketplace," says Ann Lipton, a veteran business law expert and professor at University of Colorado's law school. "It means that other firms have less incentive to compete on innovation, which is sort of the opposite of how a free market is supposed to operate," she adds. "It's just bad for the economy,""
"There's ample evidence this year of Trump actively favoring some U.S. companies and investors, while threatening others. In August, he publicly called for the resignation of Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan until Tan came to the White House to meet with him, and agreed to give the U.S. government a 10% stake in the tech company. Several other tech CEOs also spent the year appearing to personally court Trump."
Commentators have used labels such as state capitalism, MAGA Marxism, and crony capitalism to characterize recent shifts in U.S. economic practice. President Trump has blurred the line between business and government by favoring some companies and pressuring others. Government favoritism of specific firms distorts markets, reduces incentives to compete on innovation, and undermines free-market dynamics, with negative implications for long-term economic performance. Concrete examples include public pressure on Intel's CEO that resulted in a proposed 10% government stake, high-level courting of tech CEOs, and conditional approval for Nvidia chip sales tied to a government revenue share.
Read at www.npr.org
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