President-elect Donald Trump’s first order of business must be to reverse the damage caused by the “difficult” election season, 1,000 company leaders said in a letter sent to the newly elected president.
The letter by the National Association of Manufacturers was one of the first by a major industry group to congratulate Trump, while also urging strong leadership “to work together to reunite the country after a divisive election,” according to the group.
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“We write today not only to offer our congratulations but also to express our commitment in reuniting our country and our people after this particularly difficult election,” the letter read. “It is our shared belief that we, representing companies large and small, have an urgent need to restore faith in our vital economic and government institutions and to bolster the promise of America — to lift everyone up and leave no one behind.”
The letter was signed by more than 1,000 CEOs from Fortune 100 companies, small and medium-sized companies, trade groups and other business leaders, pledging to make the country whole before moving ahead on policy.
The letter added that “American families, businesses and our communities cannot truly prosper and reach their full potential in a country that is divided and distrustful.”
The manufacturers have been outspoken leaders in opposing a number of the Obama administration’s energy and environmental policies, including Obama’s halt of the embattled Dakota Access crude oil pipeline in North Dakota.
“We believe in an exceptional America,” the letter said. “We believe we are stronger as a nation when we are united. And, we believe we, as business leaders, all have a unique responsibility to bring our country back together again — a responsibility we wholeheartedly embrace.”
The CEOs offered their full support to help Trump reconcile differences and bring the country back “after a hard-fought presidential election.”
The time after an election is a time to “mend the divisions in our country, with political parties and nominees moving beyond the harshness of the campaign season and putting our nation, and our democratic system, first before all else,” the letter said.
