By David Shepardson, Joey Roulette and Gram Slattery
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and Jeff Zients, U.S. President Joe Biden’s White House chief of staff, on Thursday met with top American business leaders in Washington as they seek to curry favor with corporate America months ahead of elections, two sources said.
Trump was interviewed by conservative commentator Larry Kudlow, who served as a key economic adviser during Trump’s 2017 to 2021 term, the sources said. JP Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, Xerox CEO Steven Bandrowczak, Gap Inc President Richard Dickson, and Truist CEO Bill Rogers were seen leaving the building after the meeting.
Apple CEO Tim Cook was seen sitting in the front row, Trump economic adviser Stephen Moore said.
The Trump meeting with the Business Roundtable, which counts over 200 CEOs as members, focused on the economy. Moore said the former president “had a very pro-business message” that emphasized tax cuts for businesses and reducing regulation.
The dueling Thursday pitches show both candidates are increasingly focused on wooing deep pocketed and powerful corporate CEOs as the election draws near. In a May Reuters/Ipsos poll, 44% of registered voters said they believed Trump had a better plan for the economy compared with 33% in support of Biden’s economic strategy.
Zients, who was interviewed by Comcast CEO Brian Roberts, said Biden wasn’t interested in starting a trade war with China and that the U.S. is in a…
