The chief executive of Goldman Sachs is criticizing President Trump’s executive order on immigration.
Lloyd Blankfein, the Wall Street giant’s CEO, told firm employees Sunday that the company does not support Trump’s policy and said it does not mesh with the company’s principles.
“This is not a policy we support, and I would note that it has already been challenged in federal court,” he said in a voicemail to employees, as reported by Business Insider.
“If the order were to become or remain effective, I recognize that there is potential for disruption to the firm, and especially to some of our people and their families,” he said. “I want to assure all of you that we will work to minimize such disruption to the extent we can within the law and are focused on supporting our colleagues and their families who may be affected.”
{mosads}Blankfein’s criticism is particularly noteworthy because the Trump administration has relied heavily on talent from Goldman Sachs to fill out spots at the top of its organization.
Trump’s Treasury secretary nominee, Steven Mnuchin, and top economic adviser, Gary Cohn, both spent years at Goldman. So did Steven Bannon, one of Trump’s closest advisers, and Anthony Scaramucci, another member of Trump’s inner circle.
Cohn, who was president and chief executive officer at Goldman before joining the Trump White House as director of the National Economic Council, worked closely with Blankfein at the top of the firm.
But Blankfein was a Hillary Clinton supporter during the presidential campaign, and a number of top business executives have emerged to criticize Friday’s executive order, which bars travel to the U.S. for refugees and people from seven predominantly Muslim countries.
The new travel policy has led to a swath of large protests across the country, as individuals have been detained at several airports, as well as several court-ordered stays of aspects of the policy.