Billionaire GOP donor Ken Langone rips bullst Trump tariffs: I dont understand the god-damn formula

Billionaire Republican megadonor and Home Depot founder Ken Langone has ripped the Trump administration’s sweeping tariffs as “bulls–t” — claiming the president has been ill-advised amid the raging trade war.“I don’t understand the goddamn formula,” Langone, a veteran GOP campaign donor, told The Financial Times on Monday.

“I believe he’s been poorly advised by his advisers about this trade situation — and the formula they’re applying.”The 89-year-old, who is just the latest wealthy financier to blast the levies, decried the 46% tariff on Vietnam as “bulls–t” and said the 34% rate on China was “too aggressive, too soon.”He said: “46% on Vietnam? Come on! You might as well tell them, ‘Don’t even bother calling.’”He accused the White House of not having given “serious negotiations a chance to work” — arguing a more “constructive” and “manageable” approach would have been a 10% tariff on imported goods followed by one-on-one bilateral talks with countries.“It’s a fairly unconventional way of measuring tariffs,” he said.“I think that the countries most adversely affected hopefully will come forward and therefore quickly make a deal.”Langone said he was hopeful the commander in chief would eventually hold talks with the slew of nations impacted by the tariffs.

“Right now, what everybody’s terrified of is a tariff war,” he said.Langone’s reaction adds to the growing list of top financiers to criticize Trump’s move to enforce a 10% baseline tariff on all imports, as well as higher duties on some of the country’s biggest trading partners.

Billionaire fund manager Bill Ackman, a staunch Trump ally, on Sunday warned the world is on the brink of “self-induced economic nuclear winter” as he begged the prez to hit pause on the tariffs.JPMorgan & Chase chief executive Jamie Dimon warned, too, that uncertainties around Trump’s sweeping tariffs should be resolved quickly — since t...