Intel CEO appears to win over Trump
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President Trump. Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images
Just four days after demanding Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan resign, President Trump has described a meeting with Tan as "a very interesting one."
Why it matters: The president's resignation call over Tan's alleged Chinese ties had threatened to waylay the chip maker's turnaround effort.
What they're saying: After a meeting Monday at the White House with Tan, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Trump posted on Truth Social that Tan's "success and rise is an amazing story. Mr. Tan and my Cabinet members are going to spend time together, and bring suggestions to me during the next week."
The context: Trump called for Tan's resignation last week after Sen. Tom Cotton (R.-Ark) said that he had written to Intel's board expressing concerns about what he said were "Tan's investments and ties to semiconductor firms that are reportedly linked to the Chinese Communist Party and the People's Liberation Army."
- Tan had previously served as CEO of Cadence Design Systems, which in July reached a plea agreement with the government over claims of illegal exports to China.
- Intel's board has supported its CEO.
- "We are engaging with the administration to address the matters that have been raised and ensure they have the facts," Tan wrote to Intel employees on Thursday. "I fully share the president's commitment to advancing U.S. national and economic security, I appreciate his leadership to advance these priorities, and I'm proud to lead a company that is so central to these goals."
The bottom line: By moving quickly to engage the White House and to endorse its priorities, Tan has taken a page from Apple CEO Tim Cook and other corporate chieftains on how to best navigate being caught in the Trump spotlight.
- As a consultant told Axios' Emily Peck and Eleanor Hawkins, "Every company is just one Truth Social post away from being thrown into the political crosshairs."
