L Summers has it right

eddiew37

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Nov 25, 2016
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In an op-ed article for the Financial Times, Larry Summers, the former Treasury secretary and Harvard economics professor, went after the business executives remaining on President Donald Trump's various business councils.

Summers, a longtime critic of Trump, wrote that Trump's initial failure to denounce white nationalists after the weekend's violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, proved that the members of the various business advisory councils were having little impact on the president.

"No advisor committed to the bipartisan American traditions of government can possibly believe he or she is being effective at this point," Summers wrote. "And all should feel ashamed for complicity in Mr Trump's words and deeds. I sometimes wonder how they face their children."

The article also praised Kenneth Frazier, the CEO of Merck, for resigning from Trump's manufacturing council on Monday because of Trump's response to the Charlottesville violence.

"I have since inauguration day been troubled by the abdication of moral responsibility on the part of business figures who have lent their reputations to Donald Trump," Summers wrote. "So congratulations to Merck chief executive Ken Frazier on his resignation from the American Manufacturing Council over the president's manifestly inadequate response to Charlottesville."



Trump attacked Frazier on Twitter soon after the pharma CEO left the council, saying, "Now that Ken Frazier of Merck Pharma has resigned from President's Manufacturing Council,he will have more time to LOWER RIPOFF DRUG PRICES!"

Trump did eventually denounce white-supremacist groups by name in a televised address a few hours after he criticized Frazier.

Summers also praised Under Armour CEO Kevin Plank for leaving the manufacturing council later Monday. Intel CEO Brian Krzanich left the council after Summers' article was published.

Summers thinks that by remaining on the councils, business executives are allowing Trump to gain legitimacy by using their reputations. The economist argued that the business leaders could still call the White House on specific topics and influence policy without giving Trump the added value of their association via the councils.

"Every member of Mr Trump's advisory councils should wrestle with his or her conscience and ponder Edmund Burke's famous warning that 'All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing,'" Summers concluded.
 
Summers is a pompous windbag. Another high IQ moron that failed under Obama in epic fashion
 
Summers is a pompous windbag. Another high IQ moron that failed under Obama in epic fashion

They still don't get it....Americans support the president regardless of what these idiots say

I don't know why anyone would give two shits what Summers spews, he was in over his head as an adviser to Ears, the nation had crushing debt, 10+% unemployment, etc and this boob had the audacity to say things are not that bad. Clueless doesn't begin to describe him
 
Summers is a pompous windbag. Another high IQ moron that failed under Obama in epic fashion

They still don't get it....Americans support the president regardless of what these idiots say
I support friends and family not AH's like trump and those that support him CEO's all running scared afraid the big bad trump will hurt them Just a few step down saying FU AH to trump
 
Summers is a pompous windbag. Another high IQ moron that failed under Obama in epic fashion

They still don't get it....Americans support the president regardless of what these idiots say
I support friends and family not AH's like trump and those that support him CEO's all running scared afraid the big bad trump will hurt them Just a few step down saying FU AH to trump

Zzzzzzzzzzzz...I don't care
 
Summers is a pompous windbag. Another high IQ moron that failed under Obama in epic fashion
Sassy you are a bad bad person on the side of the haters of America


Oh grow up, you don't honestly think I give two shits what you think do you? Summers under Clinton helped create the very issues he was clueless under Obama to fix.
You only care what the AH trump says You are a very very bad person sassy
 
A real leader doesn't take their toys and go home when they're offended.

I guess they figure their work in that group wasn't all that productive or important.
.
They met once a month and did nothing The bravest left Not afraid of what trump could do to them
 
To the CEOs who joined President Donald Trump's manufacturing council with the hope of advising the president about what's good for America's private sector, I have one thing to say.

Stop playing yourselves. Now is the time.

In the past 72 hours, Trump has proved not only that he doesn't care about the values of the American workplace, but also that he doesn't respect your opinion about what those values should be.

That is why three CEOs left the president's manufacturing council on Monday.

Not in my workplace
I'm sure you're all aware of the heinous events that transpired in Charlottesville, Virginia, this weekend when white supremacists and fascists of various strains descended on the city to put their violence and bigotry on display for the world to see. An American died there, and all Trump had for her were a few pithy words about how there was blame to go around "on many sides."

And then on Monday morning, when Merck CEO Kenneth Frazier, who had been the only black CEO on the manufacturing council, resigned from it over Trump's absurd response to what transpired, Trump did what he is known to do. He went on a Twitter rampage.

"Now that Ken Frazier of Merck Pharma has resigned from President's Manufacturing Council, he will have more time to LOWER RIPOFF DRUG PRICES," he tweeted.

Under Armour CEO Kevin Plank and Intel CEO Brian Krzanich followed shortly after, and again Trump was bitter.

He tweeted: "For every CEO that drops out of the Manufacturing Council, I have many to take their place. Grandstanders should not have gone on. JOBS!"

These "grandstanders" were clearly trying to send a message to Trump, with leaving apparently the only way they could get him to pay attention. For months, CEOs have rationalized joining Trump's business councils by saying they are trying help the president make better decisions about American business. That obviously isn't happening.

Business leaders will tell you that discrimination creates a hostile work environment, so any business-minded politician should care about that. They should care that people qualified and ready to work feel safe when they do so. This has become a value, a norm in American business.

That is why you see some of the people who participated in the Charlottesville protests getting fired from their jobs. In America, we have decided that no one has a right to make anyone else feel uncomfortable in their place of business because of race or religion and that business owners have a right to make sure of that.
 

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