Donald
Trump should be removed from office to preserve democracy, business leaders say
By Matt
Egan, CNN Business
Updated
9:18 PM EST, Wed January 06, 2021
New
York(CNN Business)The National Association of Manufacturers, one of the most
influential business groups in the US, called on Vice President Mike Pence
Wednesday to consider removing President Donald Trump from office.
The
statement from Republican-leaning NAM, the nation's largest manufacturing
association, marks perhaps the strongest political statement by a major
business group in modern history. And it puts an exclamation point on the
breakup between the business community and the self-styled CEO president.
Pence
"should seriously consider working with the Cabinet to invoke the 25th
Amendment to preserve democracy," NAM CEO Jay Timmons, a former Republican
political operative, said in the statement.
Democracy
is under attack. And Wall Street is sounding the alarm
The
comments show just how appalled Corporate America is over the ongoing attack on
democracy. NAM, founded in 1895, is one of the oldest and most powerful
business groups in the nation, representing small and large manufacturers in
all 50 states.
The call
comes after Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol, interrupting the joint
session of Congress counting Electoral College votes. Pence was evacuated
during the chaos.
"The
outgoing president incited violence in an attempt to retain power, and any
elected leader defending him is violating their oath to the Constitution and
rejecting democracy in favor of anarchy," Timmons said. He added,
"This is not law and order. This is chaos. It is mob rule. It is
dangerous. This is sedition and it should be treated as such."
Business
community is 'horrified'
JPMorgan
Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, one of America's top business leaders, also condemned
the violence in Washington.
"This
is not who we are as a people or a country. We are better than this,"
Dimon said in a statement. "Our elected leaders have a responsibility to
call for an end to the violence, accept the results, and, as our democracy has
for hundreds of years, support the peaceful transition of power. Now is the
time to come together to strengthen our exceptional union."
Jeffrey
Sonnenfeld, founder of Yale University's Chief Executive Leadership Institute,
said the condemnation from NAM is unprecedented.
"Everyone
in the business community is horrified," Sonnenfeld told CNN Business.
Sonnenfeld
agreed with NAM's call for Pence and the Cabinet to consider the 25th
Amendment. "The business community will give them back-up," he said.
Manufacturing
group championed the Trump agenda
The call
by NAM is even more startling because the advocacy group is staunchly
pro-business and was a vocal supporter of Trump, cheering the president's tax
cuts, deregulation and efforts to revive manufacturing.
In
September 2017, Trump even delivered remarks at NAM's annual meeting in
Washington where he championed his economic vision.
In 2018,
Republican Congressman Kevin Brady, then chairman of the House Ways and Means
Committee, said the Trump tax cuts wouldn't have been possible without the
support of NAM and Timmons, who has been CEO since 2011.
Before
joining NAM, Timmons served as the chief of staff to Republican Senator George
Allen of Virginia, and executive director of the National Republican Senatorial
Committee, according to his bio.
During
the 2020 election cycle, NAM contributed $165,000 to Republican Congressional
candidates, according to OpenSecrets. That marked 72% of the group's
contributions.
Chamber
of Commerce: Congress must meet tonight
In a
similar vein, the Business Roundtable, whose CEO members lead companies that
employ nearly 19 million people, called on Trump and other officials to
"put an end to the chaos and to facilitate the peaceful transition of
power."
"The
chaos unfolding in the nation's capital is the result of unlawful efforts to
overturn the legitimate results of a democratic election," the Business
Roundtable said in a statement.
The US
Chamber of Commerce CEO Thomas Donohue called on Congress to gather "this
evening to conclude their Constitutional responsibility to accept the report of
the Electoral College."
Other
leaders across Wall Street and Corporate America similarly condemned the
violence in Washington and offered hope for calm ahead.
GM CEO
Mary Barra called for unity and said the violence at the US Capitol "does
not reflect who we are as a nation."
BlackRock
CEO Larry Fink decried the storming of the Capitol as an "assault on our
nation, our democracy and the will of the American people." Wells Fargo
CEO Charlie Scharf called for an "immediate end to this violence" and
for a peaceful transition of power to President-elect Biden.
IBM CEO
Arvind Krishna said in a tweet that the company "condemns today's
unprecedented lawlessness and we call for it to end immediately." The
condemnation comes a day after IBM announced the hiring of Gary Cohn, Trump's
former senior economic adviser.
Michael
Corbat, the CEO of Citigroup, said in a statement that he is
"disgusted" by those who stormed the US Capitol.
"While
these scenes are very difficult to watch," Corbat said, "I have faith
in our democratic process and know that the important work of Congress will
continue and that people will be held accountable for their actions."
-
American Bankers Association: "This is a dark day for our democracy. The
violence playing out on Capitol Hill and in the streets of Washington is
reprehensible and should shock and sadden all of us. Our nation is better than
this."
- Tim
Cook, CEO of Apple: "Today marks a sad and shameful chapter in our
nation's history. Those responsible for this insurrection should be held to
account, and we must complete the transition to President-elect Biden's
administration. It's especially when they are challenged that our ideals matter
most."
- Brian
Moynihan, CEO of Bank of America: "Today's appalling events in our
nation's capital underscore the urgent need for all American's to unite behind
one of our most cherished principles: the peaceful transfer of power that has
happened without interruption since our country's founding. We must move
forward together peacefully, respectfully and with a singular, shared focus on
our American ideals."
- Chuck
Robbins, CEO of Cisco: "What is happening in our nation's capital is
appalling and saddening. The United States has long served as a beacon of
democracy, and today we are reminded of both its importance and fragility.
@Cisco condemns the violence we have witnessed today & call for it to end
immediately.
"It's
time to recognize the legitimate democratic process, ensure a peaceful
transition of power and come back together as one nation."
- Guy
Rosen, Facebook VP, Integrity, and Monika Bickert, Facebook VP, Global Policy
Management: "Let us speak for the leadership team in saying what so many
of us are feeling. We are appalled by the violence at the Capitol today. We are
treating these events as an emergency. Our Elections Operations Center has
already been active in anticipation of the Georgia elections and the vote by
Congress to certify the election, and we are monitoring activity on our
platform in real time."
- Jim
Farley, CEO of Ford: "The Ford Motor Company condemns the violent and
antidemocratic actions today. These were destructive acts against our shared principles
and beliefs of a peaceful transition of power. We commit to working together,
with respect and empathy, to uphold core American values..."
- David
M. Solomon, Chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs: "For years, our democracy
has built a reservoir of goodwill around the world that brings important
benefits for our citizens. Recently, we have squandered that goodwill at an
alarming pace, and today's attack on the U.S. Capitol does further damage. It's
time for all Americans to come together and move forward with a peaceful
transition of power. We have to begin reinvesting in our democracy and
rebuilding the institutions that have made America an exceptional nation."
- Alfred
Kelly, Jr., Chairman and CEO of Visa: "I am shocked and saddened by what
I've seen today. We at Visa stand 100% behind the results of the election and
the collective voices of the citizens of this country. We are fully supportive
of a smooth transition of power which has been the case for almost two and a
half centuries. In this time of intense anxiety for our country and the world,
I continue to have tremendous faith in the resilience of our United States
institutions."