President Donald Trump has attacked Bank of America for its failure to lend money to conservatives in a sudden attack during a livestreamed speech to executives and elites in Davos.
The sudden explosion came in an angry speech in which Trump promised to impose tariffs on countries that do not produce in the US and OPEC demanded lower oil prices.
During a question-and-answer period, the bank's CEO Brian Moynihan asked a softball question about how his executive orders would impact his push for economic and market growth.
Trump responded, telling him, “I hope you're going to open your bank to conservatives… they don't take conservative cases.”
Moynihan did not comment on the substance of the president's attack, saying instead: “We look forward to sponsoring the World Cup,” one of several high-profile upcoming events in the US that Trump is touting.
Trump's attack was a sudden break from a round of friendly questions about his policies as his administration got underway.
A group of conservative Republican attorneys general has accused the giant lender of “debanking” Christian groups and engaging in “discriminatory” behavior after it withdrew loan agreements.
President Donald Trump delivers a special address remotely during the 55th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland
The push comes after it emerged that the bank was cooperating with requests for consumer financial data to the FBI and Treasury Department after the agencies demanded information as part of the government's investigations on January 6.
Trump on his first day granted sweeping pardons to 1,500 defendants on Jan. 6, including both non-violent offenders and those who struggled with police officers during the attack on the Capitol.
The exchange confirmed Trump's determination to dominate business policy just as he sought to defend himself against other countries, again talking about absorbing Canada as a U.S. state and threatening tough trade actions.
“You will have to pay a tariff – different amounts, but a tariff,” Trump told the gathering of heads of state and businesspeople in the Swiss Alps.
“My message to every company in the world is very simple: Come make your product in America and we will give you one of the lowest taxes of any country… but if you don't make your product in America, then very simple: will have to pay a tariff,” Trump threatened.
He then delivered a warm message and some questions to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, who US intelligence believes was behind the murder of Jamal Khashoggi.
MBS has said he wants to make major investments in the US totaling $600 billion, which Trump wants to boost.
“I will ask the Crown Prince – who is a fantastic guy – to round the figure to the nearest $1 trillion,” Trump said.
That came before he demanded OPEC pump more oil.
“You have to take it down,” Trump said.
“If the price were to fall, the war between Russia and Ukraine would end immediately,” Trump said. Russia relies on high prices to finance its war, although sanctions have hit its energy infrastructure.
Trump said he was surprised the cartel didn't pump more oil during the U.S. election.
“They should have done it a long time ago,” Trump said.
Trump delivered his speech remotely but said he would try to attend the conference in the future
Trump began his speech, delivered in monotone, by trashing his predecessor and the “disasters we inherited from a completely incompetent group of people.”
Trump was not shy about publicly bragging about his election victory, which saw him narrowly miss 50 percent of the vote, compared to 48 percent for Kamala Harris.
“We have begun America's golden age,” Trump said. “The recent presidential elections were won by millions of votes,” including victories in battleground states.
“It was a huge mandate from the American people,” he claimed.
“The entire planet will be more peaceful and prosperous,” Trump declared.
Four days into office, Trump did not stop attacking Joe Biden and the “chaos caused by the last administration's failed policies.”
“President Biden completely lost control of what was happening in our country,” he said.
He also attacked the “stupidity” of allowing other countries to “take advantage” of the US
