Business’ top lobbyist called out the policies of GOP front-runner Donald Trump on Thursday morning, saying that his proposals are “morally wrong and politically stupid.”
Tom Donohue, President and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said in a speech Thursday at the group’s Washington headquarters that the presidential campaign was cause for concern among business leaders. “It’s not silly, it’s damn serious and sometimes a little scary,” he said of the campaign.
Without mentioning Trump by name, Donohue warned against some of the ideas that Trump has championed relating to trade and immigration, two major areas of concern for the business group.
“There are the voices, sometimes very loud voices who talk about walling off America from talent and trade, and who are attacking whole groups of people based not on their conduct but on their ethnicity or religion,” Donohue said. “This is morally wrong and politically stupid.”
The Chamber is a major political force, helping to propel Republicans to majorities in the House and Senate in recent years. Typically, however, they stay out of presidential campaigns. Donohue said that wouldn’t change, although the Chamber might step in to warn against policy proposals that would damage commerce and stunt economic growth.
He remarked that the presidential campaign, on both sides, has been the most “surprising and perplexing presidential campaign in modern history.”
Democrats, he warned, are aiming to “double down” on President Obama’s policies, ensuring slow economic growth.
