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Trump turns up the heat on CEOs and private companies

By Maria Aspan

Published August 14, 2025 at 4:54 PM EDT

Corporate America doesn't want to fight with President Trump in public. But as a result, it's ceding him an unprecedented amount of control over the shape — and future — of U.S. business.

Maria Aspan

Maria Aspan is the financial correspondent for NPR. She reports on the world of finance broadly, and how it affects all of our lives.

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Catching up on a busy week of economic news.

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A weak jobs report and President Trump's latest tariffs ended a busy week for the economy --- and sparked new worries about the impact those sweeping new taxes will have on all of us.