Uber Technologies Inc CEO Travis Kalanick has quit US President Donald Trump’s council of business leaders, according to an internal memo obtained by reporters.
Kalanick wrote to his employees that hem had spoken with Trump on Thursday to “let him know that I would not be able to participate on his economic council. Joining the group was not meant to be an endorsement of the president or his agenda, but unfortunately it has been misinterpreted to be exactly that.”
His departure came on the eve of the first meeting of the group at the White House, planned for yesterday.
Walt Disney Co CEO Bob Iger will not attend either; instead he will be at a company board meeting in California, according to a person close to Iger who requested anonymity to discuss Iger’s schedule.
White House officials did not respond to requests for comment.
Public outcry about Trump — specifically his executive order suspending the nation’s refugee program and halting other aspects of immigration — has put some business leaders in an uncomfortable spot.
Uber has been buffeted all week by boycott campaigns that began when people perceived it as trying to break a taxi strike to and from New York City’s John F. Kennedy Airport that was in response to the executive order.
Kalanick condemned the executive order and has contributed to relief groups, but calls for a boycott had continued.
One woman urging boycotts for all companies tied to Trump said only total resignation from the business forum would satisfy her.
“This is not a ‘seat at the table’ moment. This is a flip-the-table moment,” said Shannon Coulter, one of the organizers of the anti-Trump social media campaign “Grab Your Wallet.”
Led by Stephen Schwarzman, chairman and chief executive of the private equity group Blackstone Group LP, the council has about 15 members, including the leaders of Wal-Mart Stores Inc, Tesla Motors Inc, Cleveland Clinic and PepsiCo Inc.
Cleveland Clinic chief executive Toby Cosgrove was planning to attend.
“He has an opportunity to talk directly to the president, and that is a good opportunity,” Cosgrove spokeswoman Eileen Sheil said.
Sheil said the clinic employs doctors and caretakers from many countries, and was directly affected by the travel ban. She said a Sudanese citizen who is a first-year resident at the Cleveland Clinic is stuck in Sudan and unable to return to work.
General Motors Co CEO Mary Barra remains a member of the advisory group and planned to attend the meeting, spokesman Patrick Morrissey said.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk said in a statement that he would attend.
He said he and others on the council “will express our objections to the recent executive order on immigration and offer suggestions for changes to the policy.”
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