Letter to Kenneth Frazier, Merck CEO, Kevin Plank, Under Armour CEO, Brian Krzanich, Intel CEO, Scott Paul, Alliance for American Manufacturing President, Richard Trumka, AFL-CIO, Inge Thulin, 3M CEO, Denise Morrison, Campbell Soup CEO, and Jeff Immelt, General Electric Chairman - Congresswoman Waters Applauds Executives for Opposition to Trump

Letter

Dear Mr. Frazier; Mr. Plank; Mr. Krzanich; Mr. Paul; Mr. Trumka; Ms. Lee; Mr. Thulin; Ms. Morrison; and, Mr. Immelt,

I want to thank you for the leadership you displayed in your decision to speak out in opposition to President Donald Trump's response to the violent Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia by withdrawing from the White House Manufacturing Council. It is not beyond any stretch of the imagination that this White House might use your withdrawal as a reason to ignore your concerns, disregard your policy agenda, or treat your [business/organization] unfavorably. Despite that risk, you demonstrated tremendous courage by placing principles first. For that, I applaud you.

Like so many Americans across the country, I am outraged by the display of hatred, bigotry and violence by white supremacists, neo-Nazis, Ku Klux Klan (KKK) members, and other alt-right white nationalist groups. I, like so many, mourn the murder of Heather Heyer and am deeply saddened by the injuries to many other counter-protesters, as well as the tragic deaths of two Virginia State Police troopers, Lt. H. Jay Cullen and Berke M. M. Bates, who were responding to the unrest.

Though nothing could have fully eased our nation's pain for the losses endured this past weekend, strong condemnation by the president for the hate groups responsible would have calmed the country as we collectively mourn. Instead, President Trump exacerbated tensions with his disturbing comments in which he blamed the victims for the violence perpetrated against them by hate groups, saying "there is blame on both sides." He went further, defending the neo-Nazis and white supremacists by saying there were "very fine people on both sides." The president fails to recognize that anyone who marches with the KKK is dangerous and represents a threat to everything for which this democracy stands.

The views expressed by President Trump don't represent American values and are harmful to the nation. Your decision to withdraw from the White House Manufacturing Council demonstrates a commitment to fairness, justice, and the values that the majority of Americans hold most dear. Thank you for your leadership and courage in standing up for those values. It is only by standing up that we can put the scourges of racism, anti-Semitism, hatred and bigotry.

Sincerely,

Maxine Waters
Member of Congress

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