Froma Harrop, syndicated columnist

Donald Trump’s whirlwind visit to Qatar was certainly an extravaganza: “Red and lavender carpets. Arabian horses. Glitzy chandeliers. Camels. Sword dancers,” according to The New York Times. Sounded like a night at Studio 54.

Back on Main Street USA, things looked less fabulous. Trump’s tariffs have been menacing the nation’s retailers, including the biggest, Walmart. About a third of Walmart’s sales come from imports. (That share would be higher if it didn’t also sell groceries largely sourced in the U.S.) The president is now going after Walmart for saying the obvious, that the tariffs may force it to soon raise prices.

True to Trumpian form, this is not entirely a diversion from what we may think it’s about: It’s a diversion from a previous diversion. That would be the flashy galas in the Arab Gulf States, which were themselves a diversion from his economic chaos. While Trump partied, family members fanned out on three continents vacuuming up millions in real estate deals. He was also planning a dinner for the 220 biggest holders of his meme coin. Buying $TRUMP coins is another means of shoveling money into his pocket.

Call it corruption. Call it grifting. Making a personal fortune off one’s presidency is illegal. Though not unknown in previous administrations, Trump is self-dealing in megaton quantities. And what better way to draw attention away from the other stuff than to accept a $400 million jetliner from Qatar, a gift that will eventually end up in his library. This is also part of the brand. It’s about getting away with law-breaking and being blatant about it, mob-style.

So now Trump has us blabbing about his ridiculous demand on Truth Social that Walmart “EAT THE TARIFFS” and keep prices down. “I’ll be watching, and so will your customers.”

Given the overlap between MAGA and Walmart’s customer base, the post gets extra buzz through the implied threat to America’s biggest shopkeeper.

But it’s a vain threat, given that for much of Trump country, Walmart is all there is. The retailing juggernaut long ago plopped its big-box discount stores on the outskirts of America’s downtowns, thus wiping out the competition on what was traditional Main Street. With 4,000 stores, Walmart now claims about 90% of Americans as customers. Trump also wrote: “Walmart should STOP trying to blame Tariffs as the reason for raising prices throughout the chain. Walmart made BILLIONS OF DOLLARS last year, far more than expected.”

And so Trump gets us talking not only about the nervy assault on America’s largest private employer — about 1.6 million people in the United States work for Walmart — but also his honking hypocrisy of hitting a business for trying to make a profit. Again, duplicity is part of his act. Trump has often criticized companies for not capitalizing on profit opportunities. “The point is that you can’t be too greedy,” he wrote in “The Art of the Deal.”

And he’s defended retailers when they could be used as a weapon against other enemies. Recall his attack on Amazon several years ago, claiming it was hurting the U.S. Postal Service. “Amazon is doing great damage to tax-paying retailers,” Trump wrote on Twitter in 2017. “Towns, cities and states throughout the U.S. are being hurt — many jobs being lost!”

Not coincidentally, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos was the owner of The Washington Post. Back then The Post was a harsh Trump critic. Another day, another diversion.

For now, Trump has us noting the inconsistency of his expressing shock that others want to make money. Walmart, at least, is doing it legally. Meanwhile, no amount of diversion will hide the coming reality that Americans will be paying the higher prices.

Follow Froma Harrop on Twitter @FromaHarrop. She can be reached at fharrop@gmail.com. To find out more about Froma Harrop and read features by other Creators writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators webpage at www.creators.com. COPYRIGHT 2025 CREATORS.COM