Gary Cohn, director of the White House’s National Economic Council, announced on Tuesday that he is stepping down after speculation that he and President Trump were moving apart on trade policy.The relationship between the two seemed to be strained over the past weeks with the president insisting on imposing a 25-percent tariff on steel imports and a 10-percent tariff on aluminum, a move Cohn was opposed to.
“It has been an honor to serve my country and enact pro-growth economic policies to benefit the American people, in particular the passage of historic tax reform,” Cohn said in a statement. “I am grateful to the president for giving me this opportunity and wish him and the administration great success in the future.” he said.
Cohn, former head of Goldman Sachs, has served as President Trump’s chief economic advisor since the beginning of the administration. His deep ties to Wall Street made him a reassuring presence to investors and traders. However, as a Democrat, Cohn was reportedly not a natural fit inside the White House and was frequently at odds with the Trump loyalists.
It was reported that Cohn was angry over President Trump’s remarks about the racially charged violence in Charlottesville, Virginia and came close to resigning at that time. However, he chose to stay as President Trump pursued tax reform, which ended with a victory for the White House.
Cohn’s announcement to resign follows several other recent high-level departures, including Hope Hicks, communications director; Rob Porter, staff director; and advisor Reed Cordish.
Meanwhile, the most powerful people in finance have been reportedly soothed by Cohn’s presence in the White House and have expressed concern at Cohn’s departure. “Experience matters and Gary has plenty of experience and I think that is really important in both calm markets and choppy markets,” said Tom Nides, the vice chairman of Morgan Stanley. “Wall Street just lost its security blanket,” said Cowen analyst Chris Krueger.
