President Donald Trump announced Wednesday afternoon that he is disbanding his manufacturing council as the executives who comprised its membership have been defecting en masse this week.
Before he did, though, one of the most prominent CEOs in the country says he left of his own volition.
In a statement, General Electric chairman and former CEO Jeff Immelt condemned Trump for his Tuesday remarks––calling them “deeply troubling”––and said he informed the council’s dwindling membership that he planned to depart.
“The committee I joined had the intention to foster policies that promote American manufacturing and growth. However, given the ongoing tone of the discussion, I no longer feel that this council can accomplish these goals,” Immelt said (via CNN). Therefore, I notified members of the council this morning that I could no longer serve on the President’s Committee on American Manufacturing.”
Immelt’s decision is an abrupt reversal from his position on Monday — when he opted to remain on the council in spite of Trump’s widely panned Saturday address.
“[I]t is important for GE to participate in the discussion on how to drive growth and productivity in the U.S.,” a GE spokesperson said in a statement Monday (via Politico) “Therefore, Jeff Immelt will remain on the Presidential Committee on American Manufacturing while he is the chairman of GE.”
But Immelt evidently had a change of heart following Trump’s Tuesday speech. And now, the council is no more.