President Trump bragged that he already warned the European Union was taking “advantage of the U.S.” after Google was hit with a fine of more than $5 billion on Wednesday from EU regulators for exploiting the dominance of its Android operating system.
“I told you so! The European Union just slapped a Five Billion Dollar fine on one of our great companies, Google,” Trump tweeted Thursday morning. “They truly have taken advantage of the U.S., but not for long!”
[Opinion: Is Google an evil monopoly? The EU thinks so]
I told you so! The European Union just slapped a Five Billion Dollar fine on one of our great companies, Google. They truly have taken advantage of the U.S., but not for long!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 19, 2018
In its ruling earlier this week, the EU argued that Google has unfairly promoted its services by requiring the manufacturers of Android phones to preload them with Google apps and services, such as those used for email, music, videos, and search, among other features.
Google has announced that it will appeal the ruling, asserting that the EU’s position doesn’t promote fair competition.
Trump has been critical of the EU, and recently labeled the union as a “foe” of the U.S. in an interview that aired Sunday.
“Well I think we have a lot of foes — I think the European Union is a foe — what they do to us in trade. Now, you wouldn’t think of the European Union, but they’re a foe,” Trump said in the interview.
Additionally, Trump hit the EU with steel and aluminum tariffs last month, and has warned that tariffs could also be imposed on EU cars and car parts.
