The Trump Administration's thirtieth week in office has not been without controversy over the former business mogul's response to the racially-motivated protest in Charlottesville, Virginia that was subsequently followed by the death of counter-protester Heather Heyer. On Friday, August 11th, an "Unite the Right" assembly was held on the University of Virginia campus in efforts to protest the removal of a statue of Confederate Commander General Robert E. Lee. Holding torches, the protesters reportedly held flags with Confederate and Nazi symbols chanting phrases such as "Jews will not replace us" and "White lives matter." The following day, another protest was held in Charlottesville that featured a plethora of different assemblies, such as white nationalists, counter-protesters and a self-styled militia. By 11AM, white nationalists rushed into a line formed by counter-protesters, erupting into a frenzy of swinging clubs, chemical spraying and punching. Later into the demonstration, 20-year old protester James Alex Fields Jr. reportedly drove his car into pedestrians, subsequently murdering counter-protester Heather Heyer as well as injuring 19 other counter protesters.

© Rodney Dunning / Flickr.com

Following the unrest on Saturday, President Trump offered words on the Charlottesville protest and stated that he condemns "in the strongest possible terms [the] egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence on many sides." In response to Trump's language on the matter, both Republicans and Democrats criticized his reaction to the protest, believing that his use of the term "on many sides" falsely equated the white nationalists' display of racism to the response of the counter-protesters. Republican senator Cory Gardner agreed with the general consensus in a tweet, saying "Mr. President - we must call evil by its name. These were white supremacists and this was domestic terrorism."

In the wake of the rising bipartisan disapproval of Trump's earlier statements on the protests, the White House swiftly organized an event following a meeting with FBI Director Christopher Wray and Attorney General Jeff Sessions concerning a civil rights investigation into Charlottesville. In the event, Trump explicitly condemned the behavior of the Unite the Right rally goers in a scripted statement, asserting "Racism is evil -- and those who cause violence in its name are criminals and thugs." Trump continued, stating "including KKK, neo-Nazis, white supremacists, and other hate groups are repugnant to everything we hold dear as Americans."

© Rodney Dunning / Flickr.ocm

Although Trump released a statement in opposition with the main perpetrators of criminal activity in the protests, the criticism of the 71-year old President did not stop there. Throughout the week, Trump was met with the scorching disapproval of corporate America. In response to both statements made by Trump, eight members of the Manufacturing Jobs Initiative and Strategic and Policy Forum councils resigned from their positions. One of the members who resigned in response was African-American CEO Kenneth Frazier of the pharmaceutical company Merck (MRK  ), who stated that "America's leaders must honor our fundamental values by clearly rejecting expressions of hatred, bigotry and group supremacy, which run counter to the American ideal that all people are created equal. As CEO of Merck and as a matter of personal conscience, I feel a responsibility to take a stand against intolerance and extremism." Other members who resigned included Johnson & Johnson (JNJ  ) CEO Alex Gorsky and United Technologies (UTX  ) CEO Greg Hayes.

By late Wednesday morning of August 16th, members of both councils mutually decided to end both business committees. Immediately after, President Trump formerly ended the councils in a tweet, boldly stating "Rather than putting pressure on the businesspeople of the Manufacturing Council & Strategy & Policy Forum, I am ending both. Thank you all!"

It is apparent that Trump's remarks concerning the Charlottesville protests carried a large impact on American citizens as a whole. The absence of two business councils will prove to have a large effect on President Trump's future decisions regarding American manufacturing and business. Only time will tell the extent by which President Trump will carry on without the consultation of his former corporate councils.