Inside the room where CEOs say what they really think of Trump’s policies

Corporate leaders regularly praise the Trump administration and its policies in public. Behind closed doors, their mood is darker.

- Chip Cutter [e-mail]

At a meeting of CEOs and other executives on Wednesday convened by the Yale School of Management, dozens of America’s business leaders sounded off on their concerns about tariffs, immigration, foreign policy matters and what many described as an increasingly chaotic, hard-to-navigate business environment.

“They're being extorted and bullied individually, but in private discourse, they're really upset,” said Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, a Yale management professor who organized the event, referring to recent deals that give the U.S. government a cut of certain Nvidia chip sales and a “golden share” in US. Steel.

The meeting included prominent corporate executives such as Motorola Solutions CEO Greg Brown , who also received an award for leadership; Booking Holdings CEO Glenn Fogel; and Ethan Allen CEO Faroog Kathwari. Other attendees included the heads of major manufacturers, consumer brands, automakers, technology companies and investment firms. Many who shared their concerns Wednesday in the confines of a private conference room didn’t want to speak publicly for fear that their companies could be targeted by the administration or that they could attract criticism from Trump.

In a series of poll questions, the executives in the room made their frustrations known. Asked if tariffs had been helpful or hurtful to their businesses, 71% of respondents described the levies as harmful. Another question centered on the legality of tariffs. About three quarters of respondents said courts were correct in saying the tariffs are illegal as executed. The Supreme Court will take up the matter this fall.