WHO USED WHO?
Corporate America and Trump were allies on many things over the past four years. Now that the bond between the two is coming apart, who got the most out of the alliance?

Companies might seem to have come away winners. They got tax cuts and deregulation, both of which could remain in place for years after Trump.

And Trump’s actions in the last 3 months have also allowed companies to project a break from the president. “He went too far” is the implied message companies are sending with their recent announcements, like this (with @jimtankersley and @LaurenSHirsch): https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/09/business/national-association-manufacturers-trump.html

BUT Trump also benefitted significantly. He used business to project himself as someone who cares for the American worker – and many businesses played along. He also had no trouble surrounding himself with some of the most prominent CEOs.

Seeing someone like Tim Cook, who almost certainly does not hold Trumpian views, work with Trump signaled to the world that the president was containable. Check out this @dgelles piece: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/07/business/corporate-america-trump-capitol-mob.html

And such gestures from corporate America would have bolstered support for Trump heading into the 2020 election. It gave him the appearance of competence and made it even harder for nonTrumpers to make advances in the GOP.

So, all in all, BOTH sides benefitted from the alliance, which means it will most likely be a template for the future. Trumpian politicians will push for tax cuts and deregulation and stay just shy of actions/words that will cut off donations etc.

The skeptic in me thinks such politicians will look back at 2016-2020 and see they can do a lot of very Trumpian things before they are shunned by CEOs and lose support from trade groups. So why not give it go?