FBN Exclusive: ‘Pharma Bro’ Martin Shkreli says Trump Will ‘Make Pharma Great Again’
Martin Shkreli, better known throughout the world as “Pharma Bro,” is betting on Donald Trump to bring pharmaceutical jobs back to the U.S.
“Donald Trump is a dream for business people like me,” Shkreli said during an exclusive interview with FOX Business Network’s Maria Bartiromo. “I think Trump’s going to make pharma great again.”
The former Turing Pharmaceuticals CEO, who first made headlines for sharply increasing the price of a widely-used HIV/AIDS drug, said Trump’s proposed policies will make the industry more competitive.
“Almost all pharma manufacturing right now is done in India and China and the quality of manufacturing pharmaceuticals has declined dramatically,” he said. “Bringing those jobs and manufacturing to the U.S. – I think that can only help us.”
He added, “I think Trump’s going to make it easier to be a drug company in America.”
When asked whether he would be willing to talk to Trump about pharmaceutical policy, Shkreli said he is more than eager to do so.
“Sure, the same way he ran on a platform that he’s the best to close loopholes and to close exploitations because he’s the one who took advantage of them,” Shkreli said.
He said he knows how to lower the prices of drugs and believes it has to be done in a way that’s fair.
“It has to be done in a way that allows innovation,” he said, “and I have a lot of great ideas for the president-elect.”
One of those ideas includes having the government start a drug company.
Even though he hasn’t directly reached out, Skreli said he is the perfect person to present new ideas to Congress.
“Last time I was in Congress, they weren’t very receptive,” he said. “At the end of the day that’s what’s wrong with Washington. Instead of asking the one guy who knows the system better than anybody, they just wanted to yell at me.”
But, he said, the great thing about Trump is he understands what’s it’s like to be yelled at.
“He understands what it’s like to send offensive tweets,” Shkreli said. “He understands what it’s like to be someone like me where a lot of people don’t like him, but there [are] also a lot of people that like him, too.”