FedEx CEO Fred Smith Visits Trump Tower to Meet President-Elect
FedEx Corp. CEO Frederick Smith met with President-elect Donald Trump on Nov. 17 in New York.
Smith is not considered a candidate for an administration post, although the meeting came as Trump was vetting candidates for his administration, according to the Memphis, Tennessee-based package delivery company.
"Mr. Smith met with President-Elect Trump, whom he has known for many years, and others involved in the transition. Mr. Smith is not a candidate for a cabinet position," FedEx spokesman Patrick Fitzgerald said.
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Smith and his company are staunch advocates of the benefits of free global trade.
FedEx has been strongly committed to the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which Trump opposes. The deal is awaiting approval by Congress and other participating nations.
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One of Smith's top lieutenants, FedEx Freight chief Michael Ducker, said at a Memphis logistics conference last week that tax code reform, infrastructure improvement and removal of red tape on new businesses are high on FedEx's list of wants from the Trump administration.
On the campaign trail, Trump pledged to junk the North American Free Trade Agreement and renegotiate terms more favorable to the United States on the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership.
Trump and Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton opposed the 12-country TPP deal, calling it a potential drain on American jobs.
FedEx ranks No. 2 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest U.S. and Canadian for-hire carriers.
Reuters News reported that Trump also was scheduled to meet Nov. 17 with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, as well as former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, U.S. House Financial Services Chairman Jeb Hensarling, Florida Gov. Rick Scott, Oracle Corp. co-CEO Safra Catz, General Jack Keane, Admiral Mike Rogers and Ken Blackwell, a senior fellow at the Family Research Council and a member of Trump’s transition team.
