Even Business Leaders Who Abandoned Trump’s Councils May Not Stray Far Last week’s abandonment of President Trump by the leaders of America’s largest corporations was a resounding signal to the country and the world that they won’t tolerate anyone — even the president — coming to the defense of those who preach indefensible hate. In some ways, it was easy for the C. E.O.s to abandon the president — especially given the safety in numbers — because so many of them privately say they felt like props that enabled Mr. Trump to look like a businessman to voters who have no idea he was never one of them. Will one of the former business leaders in President Trump’s inner circle resign, following the disintegration of the president’s various business councils last week? Unlike the business “councils,” the roles in the administration that people like Mr. Mnuchin and Mr. Cohn inhabit are more meaningful, even when they are not successful in swaying the president. There are two others who haven’t gotten a whiff of credit but should: Bob Iger, chief executive of Disney, and Elon Musk of Tesla, who left the councils long ago because they could not abide the president’s decision to abandon the Paris climate accord.
