White House chief economic adviser Gary Cohn "seriously considered resigning" in the wake of President Trump's response to the Charlottesville, Virginia, white nationalist rally, the Financial Times reported Friday. Cohn, who is Jewish, told the Financial Times in his first public comments on the topic that he faced "enormous pressure" both to quit and to stay onboard after Trump blamed "both sides" for the rally's violence and suggested there were "very fine people" marching among the white supremacists.
Cohn said he ultimately decided to stay because he felt "a duty to fulfill my commitment to work on behalf of the American people." "As a Jewish American, I will not allow neo-Nazis ranting 'Jews will not replace us' to cause this Jew to leave his job. I feel deep empathy for all who have been targeted by these hate groups. We must all unite together against them," Cohn said.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Federal judges block Trump citizenship orderSpeed Read A second judge has blocked the president's order to end citizenship for children born on American soil to parents without legal status
-
DOGE official at Treasury resigns after racist postsSpeed Read Marko Elez's ability to access the Treasury's central government payment system has been rescinded
-
'Seriously, not literally': how should the world take Donald Trump?White House rhetoric and reality look likely to become increasingly blurred
-
Trump orders ban on trans female athletesspeed read The order directs the federal government to withhold funding from schools that do not comply
-
Musk's DOGE gains access to Medicare, eyes FAAspeed read The billionaire said his Department of Government Efficiency will make 'rapid safety upgrades' to our air traffic control systems
-
Trump: US 'will take over' Gaza, without PalestiniansSpeed Read President Trump has suggested the US take ownership of Gaza, permanently displacing more than two million Palestinian residents
-
Democrats try to stop Trump's USAID closureSpeed Read Trump and Elon Musk are attempting to dismantle the US Agency for International Development, a move congressional Democrats say is illegal
-
Trump tariffs on Canada, Mexico, China rattle marketsSpeed read The tariffs on America's top three trading partners are expected to raise the prices of everything from gas and cars to tomatoes and tequila
