Billionaire casino owner Sheldon Adelson is cautioning President Trump about how an intensifying trade war against China could hurt the economy and endanger the president’s reelection.
Adelson reportedly called Trump last month to advise him on the trade fight, The Wall Street Journal reported.
“Sheldon Adelson and President Trump have met and spoken about the broad concerns the business community has with the escalation of trade tensions between the two nations,” Myron Brilliant, the head of international affairs at the Chamber of Commerce, told the Journal.
{mosads}But the Journal also noted that Adelson could have some personal business worries about escalating tensions between the United States and China over trade.
Adelson, the chairman and chief executive of Las Vegas Sands Corp., manages a casino property in Macau, a Chinese territory, which provides a majority of the company’s income, according to the Journal.
The casino’s operating license in Macau is scheduled to end in 2022, unless the Macau government allows the company to obtain a new license.
American companies operating in China have been told by Chinese state media that they may have to suffer economic consequences because of the trade war.
The phone call was not the first time Adelson has reportedly conversed with Trump about the effects of the trade war. The billionaire met with Trump on Aug. 20 and then called Trump days after the president tweeted on Aug. 23 about increased tariffs for China by 5 percentage points on Oct. 1.
The president has since delayed the tariff hikes that had been set to go into effect Oct. 15, but it is unclear if Adelson played a role in that decision, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The Hill has reached out to the White House for comment.