President Trump's Business Councils Fall Apart

WASHINGTON, DC — As criticism from Democrats, Republicans and business leaders mounts against President Trump over his reaction to the racist violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, this week, the embattled commander in chief decided to go on the offensive and announce the end of two administration councils before any more CEOs could announce that they were resigning in protest.

In light of the president's tepid response to white supremacist attacks, many CEOs who had joined with Trump decided to abandon him. (For more information on this and other political stories, subscribe to the White House Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts.)

"Rather than putting pressure on the businesspeople of the Manufacturing Council & Strategy & Policy Forum, I am ending both," Trump said in a tweet Wednesday. "Thank you all!"

Watch: Trump Goes After Former Members Of His Advisory Council

Members of the Strategic and Policy Forum told CNBC that they decided to disband the panel on their own. It was only after they made that decision that Trump announced his decision to dissolve both councils, CNBC reported.

"The thinking was it was important to do as a group," one of the members of the Strategic and Policy Forum told CNBC. "As a panel, not as individuals because it would have more significant impact. It makes a central point that it's not going to go forward. It's done."

First it was the leader of a major U.S. pharmaceutical company, then the CEO of an athletic gear company, and before Monday ended, the chief executive of a $170 billion tech giant. Trump excoriated those who had resigned from a federal panel created years ago to advise the U.S. president Tuesday morning, and just minutes later, a fourth business leader announced his withdrawal. Shortly thereafter, Scott Paul, the president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing, said he was leaving the Manufacturing Jobs Initiative "because it's the right thing for me to do."

On Wednesday morning, after an evening press conference the night before stirred up even more outrage against the president, other CEOs, including Campbell Soup's Denise Morrison and Alex Gorsky of Johnson & Johnson, announced they were abandoning the president as well.

Trump appeared sanguine about the future of the councils on Tuesday when he tweeted:

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The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images