In an era where discourse feels more like a contact sport, CEOs increasingly find themselves in the crosshairs of government officials on both sides of the aisle who wield the “full weight of the law” as a tool for personal or partisan retribution. Whether a populist attack on Jamie Dimon, rhetorical squeeze on Exxon or high-profile skirmish between Disney and Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida, the message from the bully pulpit is clear: fall in line or pay the price.

So, how should CEOs react when a public official brings the full weight of the government selectively against a company as selective political retribution? To navigate these waters without losing your soul or your shareholders, consider these five principles derived from my new book, Trump’s Ten Commandments: Strategic Lessons from the Trump Leadership Toolbox (Simon & Schuster and Worth Books).

1. Fight Fire with Facts

Misinformation has a dangerous shelf life. Social psychology warns us of the sleeper effect, where people eventually forget the biased source of a lie but remember the lie itself as truth. If an official attacks your company with false facts, you cannot “wait for the news cycle to pass.” You must forcefully and repeatedly challenge the record, no matter how often or loudly those lies are repeated. Facts don’t speak for themselves in a polarized environment; you must give them a megaphone.

2. Forge Alliances and Shared Fate

The “divide and conquer” tactic only works if you let yourself be isolated. When one company is targeted, every company in that sector is at risk. Leaders must build coalitions that demonstrate a shared fate. When the business community speaks as a collective—reminding officials that capital is mobile and stability is a prerequisite for investment—the cost of political retribution becomes too high for any official to ignore.

3. Don’t Join a Pig in the Mudbath

There is a profound difference between standing your ground and rolling in the muck. As the old adage goes, “Never wrestle with a pig; you both get dirty, and the pig likes it.” Retaliatory populists thrive on chaos and personal insults. Maintain the high ground by focusing on facts, the law and the economic impact. Avoid the ad hominem. Your power lies in your role as a stable pillar of society, not as an overt political combatant or street brawler.

4. Skip Short-Term Appeasement

It is tempting to tender a peace offering to a vengeful official to make a regulatory headache disappear. But appeasement is a failing long-term strategy. It signals that your company can be bullied, turning a one-time shakedown into a permanent cost of doing business, as subsequent populists return to the tiller and renege on prior agreements to push for more.

If you trade your principles for a moment of quiet, you’ll find that not only is that moment completely transitory, but the price of the next truce is even higher.

5. Puncture Grandiosity, Don’t Gloat

Victory in the courts or the court of public opinion should be handled with surgical precision. The goal is to push back against government overreach, not to humiliate any officeholder personally or puncture their aura of grandiosity.

We saw a cautionary tale in the recent friction involving Harvard. While the university itself remained measured, certain intermediaries reportedly spoke to The New York Times in ways that could be perceived as gloating. This backfired, fueling the next cycle of retribution. Let the facts of your victory do the talking; your own voice should remain focused on the path forward. Ultimately, governance by grievance only succeeds when the private sector remains silent. By choosing fact over appeasement and strategic precision over needless provocation, CEOs ensure that their companies remain pillars of the community rather than pawns of the political cycle. Stability is born of strength, not surrender.