Election day continues to rattle executives.
The people have spoken and Donald Trump is now the president-elect of the United States. After a panic on election eve, the U.S. stock market stabilized and then rallied, reaching an all-time high. Will President Trump bring more rallies to Wall Street? Here’s what some CEOs of America’s biggest companies say.
Indra Nooyi, PepsiCo (ticker: PEP)
“I had to answer a lot of questions, from my daughters, from my employees, they were all in mourning,” the CEO of PepsiCo told CNBC anchor and New York Times columnist Andrew Ross Sorkin at the DealBook Conference Thursday. “Our employees are all crying, and the question that they are asking, especially those that are not white: ‘Are we safe?’ Women are asking, ‘Are we safe?’ LGBT people are asking, ‘Are we safe?’ I never thought I’d have had to answer those questions.”
Nooyi: ‘Let life go on.’
Nooyi says she is supportive of Trump and that her employees and her daughters should relax. “The first thing that we all have to do is to assure everyone living in the United States that you are safe. Nothing has changed as a result of this election,” Nooyi says. “The process of democracy has happened. We just have to let life go on.”
Jeff Bezos, Amazon.com (AMZN)
Bezos, who also owns the Washington Post, tweeted a short but also supportive statement for the president-elect: “Congratulations to @realDonaldTrump. I for one give him my most open mind and wish him great success in his service to the country.”
Bezos has a chilly history with Trump.
As Recode notes, the president-elect and Bezos have butted heads. In May, Trump criticized Bezos and the Post’s critical reporting of his campaign, saying, “He’s using the Washington Post, which is peanuts, he’s using that for political purposes to save Amazon in terms of taxes and in terms of antitrust.” Last month, Bezos said of Trump, “To try and chill the media and threaten retribution and retaliation, which is what he’s done in a number of cases, it just isn’t appropriate.”
Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook (FB)
The Facebook CEO wrote a post on his company’s platform that focused on his daughter, Max. “Holding Max, I thought about all the work ahead of us to create the world we want for our children. This work is bigger than any presidency and progress does not move in a straight line. The most important opportunities of Max’s generation — like curing all disease, improving education, connecting everyone and promoting equal opportunity — will take long-term focus and finding new ways for all of us to work together, sometimes over decades.”
Terry Lundgren, Macy’s (M)
Macy’s famously decided in 2015 to remove Trump-branded clothing from its stores after Trump referred to immigrants from Mexico and other countries as “killers and rapists.” Lundgren doubled down on that decision after the election. “We made our decision about a year and a half ago, and stand by our decision,” he told TheStreet. “As I have said, we wouldn’t carry product from a political candidate — and now a politician — whether they be Republican or Democrat. If Hillary Clinton had a line of women’s suits or handbags I wouldn’t carry those either. I just think we don’t want to be a politically associated company.”
Tim Cook, Apple (AAPL)
The CEO of Apple emailed his U.S. employees asking for them to come together. “While there is discussion today about uncertainties ahead, you can be confident that Apple’s North Star hasn’t changed,” Cook wrote. “Our products connect people everywhere, and they provide the tools for our customers to do great things to improve their lives and the world at large. Our company is open to all, and we celebrate the diversity of our team here in the United States and around the world — regardless of what they look like, where they come from, how they worship or who they love.”
Howard Schultz, Starbucks Corp. (SBUX)
The Starbucks CEO wrote in an email to employees that he was “stunned” with the election results. “Today, I trust you, and I trust all that is good in our country. Let’s take care of each other and the people in our lives. I believe we will each find the best version of ourselves to help our country move on in the direction we all deserve. Together is where our collective power lies, as partners, and as Americans.”
Jeff Immelt, General Electric Co. (GE)
Immelt made it clear that while GE would work with Trump and Congress, the company’s values and Trump’s campaign messages aren’t all the same. “We support people of all races, genders and sexual orientations,” he wrote to employees in a message that Reuters saw. “We believe in the importance of globalization and investment.”
Michael Neidorff, Centene (CNC)
Centene’s CEO says that the Affordable Care Act, which Trump has said he would repeal, requires an adjustment. Neidorff told CNBC, “You could do it either way. You could start over, or you could look at what you have now and say, ‘What are the fundamental issues?’ And there are structural issues: number of tiers, who’s covered, what’s happening, and you can repair it.”
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What 8 CEOs Are Saying About Donald Trump’s Victory originally appeared on usnews.com
