President Trump is removing two members from the board of the Tennessee Valley Authority, the largest U.S. public power company, amid criticism the company is outsourcing jobs.
“So, let this serve as a warning to any federally appointed board. If you betray American workers, then you will hear two simple words ‘you’re fired. You’re fired,’” Trump said.
Trump announced the decision to remove TVA board Chairman James Thompson and board member Richard Howarth at the White House on Monday, during a meeting with U.S. Tech Workers, a nonprofit organization urging limits on H-1B visas to foreign workers. That group recently slammed the TVA for laying off at least 64 U.S. workers while expanding its use of H-1B visas.
“If the TVA does not move swiftly to reverse their decision to rehire their workers, then more board members will be removed,” Trump said. “We have the absolute right to remove board members.”
In response to Trump’s remarks, TVA said it supported an executive order Trump signed on Monday requiring federal agencies to prioritize U.S. workers in federal contracts. That executive order specifically criticized TVA for saying it would outsource 20% of its technology jobs, which the order said could cause more than 200 U.S. workers to lose their jobs and cost the local economy tens of millions of dollars.
“All TVA employees are U.S. based citizens,” the power company said in a statement. “All jobs related to TVA’s Information Technology department must be performed in the U.S. by individuals who may legally work in this country.”
The company added that its board members “serve at the pleasure of the President,” and the board can “continue its oversight function with the loss of one or more of its members.”
Trump on Monday also again slammed TVA CEO Jeff Lyash for being “ridiculously overpaid” with a salary of $8 million per year. He said any new CEO of the power company should be paid no more than $500,000 a year, “which is still a significant amount more than the president of the United States.”
The incident isn’t Trump’s first tussle with the TVA. In April, Trump said he’d support reducing “by a lot” Lyash’s salary, quipping that he “has to be the highest-paid man in any government.”
And in 2019, the TVA’s board voted to approve the closure of two coal plants, bucking direct requests from Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to keep them running. Lyash, in an interview last September, told the Washington Examiner the decision was about economics and not “about whether coal is good or bad.”
