Tech

Trump rips into 'The Amazon Washington Post' after report that he's unhappy with North Korea talks

Key Points
  • Shares of Amazon fell nearly 2 percent in early trading before paring half the losses.
  • Trump has long called for greater taxes on Amazon, saying in January that the company's dominance was hurting American retailers.
Trump slams Amazon after Washington Post reports that he's unhappy with North Korea talks
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Trump slams Amazon after Washington Post reports he's unhappy with North Korea

President Donald Trump is again taking aim at Amazon for "using" the U.S. Postal Service as its "delivery boy," raising the possibility of antitrust claims against the company.

Trump railed against the e-retailer and The Washington Post — owned by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos — in a series of tweets Monday morning, claiming the newspaper has "gone crazy" against Trump in the months since Amazon "lost the Internet Tax Case in the U.S. Supreme Court."

Shares of Amazon fell nearly 2 percent in early trading Monday before paring half the losses. The stock closed less than a percent down. 

"The Amazon Washington Post has gone crazy against me ever since they lost the Internet Tax Case in the U.S. Supreme Court two months ago. Next up is the U.S. Post Office which they use, at a fraction of real cost, as their “delivery boy” for a BIG percentage of their packages...." Trump tweeted Monday.

He added: "....In my opinion the Washington Post is nothing more than an expensive (the paper loses a fortune) lobbyist for Amazon. Is it used as protection against antitrust claims which many feel should be brought?"

The Supreme Court ruled in June that states have the right to collect potentially billions of dollars in taxes from internet sales — a decision that left Amazon largely unaffected.

Trump has long called for greater taxes on Amazon, saying in January that the company's dominance is hurting American retailers. Amazon already collects sales tax in every state on the products it sells directly, which account for roughly half of all units sold on its site.

Trump has also repeatedly dinged the company for what he says is an unfair pricing structure with the Postal Service. In April, Trump signed an executive order establishing a task force to look at the operations and finances of the USPS and recommend reforms.

North Korea is 'playing to Trump's vanity,' says strategist
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North Korea is 'playing to Trump's vanity,' says strategist

In resurfacing his criticisms Monday, Trump hinted at future antitrust action against the company.

His administration has been notably tough on antitrust matters, blocking chip company Broadcom's proposed acquisition of Qualcomm and challenging telecom giant AT&T's merger with Time Warner.

Trump frequently links Amazon to The Washington Post, combining criticism of the newspaper's coverage with claims of unfair business practices by the online retailer.

Earlier Monday, Trump fumed on Twitter about reports that said he wasn't happy with the way talks with North Korea were progressing. The Washington Post reported that Trump asks his aides for daily updates on the negotiations and is frustrated with the lack of rapid progress, as well as coverage of the Singapore summit in June, which yielded no concrete results.

"A Rocket has not been launched by North Korea in 9 months. Likewise, no Nuclear Tests. Japan is happy, all of Asia is happy. But the Fake News is saying, without ever asking me (always anonymous sources), that I am angry because it is not going fast enough. Wrong, very happy!" Trump tweeted.

—CNBC's Mike Calia contributed to this report.

Trump wants to prove that Amazon is costing the Post Office billions, here’s why it’s not that simple
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Trump wants to prove that Amazon is costing the Post Office billions, here’s why it’s not that simple