Once-loud companies quiet about Trump’s latest Paris Agreement pullout

The first time President Trump yanked the U.S. out of the Paris Agreement in May 2017, 30 big-name CEOs at companies ranging from 3M to The Walt Disney Co. published a letter urging him to change his mind. This time around, not so much.

“Our business interests are best served by a stable and practical framework facilitating an effective and balanced response to reducing global [greenhouse gas] emissions,” the CEOs wrote in their May 10, 2017, letter. “The Paris Agreement gives us that flexible framework to manage climate change while providing a smooth transition for business.”

But there has been no such coordinated response to Trump’s executive order on Jan. 20 that pulled the U.S out of the multinational pact for a second time — nor does there appear to be a plan for one, according to spokespeople for two of the companies involved in that original campaign.

Not just the usual suspects

Trellis reached out to 29 of the 30 companies to inquire about plans for a fresh letter about the January pullout. Broad Group, based in China, does not publish a centralized media contact and was not contacted.

The 2017 letter was notable for its broad representation of U.S. industries:

• Consumer products powerhouses Newell Brands, Procter & Gamble and Unilever
• Financial services and insurance giants Allianz, Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley
• Food and beverage producers Campbell Soup, Cargill and Coca-Cola Co. 
• Chemical makers Dow Chemical, E.I. DuPont de Nemours and Solvay
• Fashion brand Kering
• Holding company Virgin Group
• Utility Pacific Gas & Electric
• Tech firm Salesforce
• Electric vehicle maker Tesla
• Media and entertainment company Walt Disney
• Health care and pharmaceutical concerns Johnson & Johnson and Royal DSM
• Manufacturers 3M, Broad Group, Corning, Cummins, Dana, General Electric and Harris Corp.

Contacted in recent days, three companies — Harris, JPMorgan and Morgan — declined to comment. DuPont and Salesforce spokespeople said they were not aware of plans for a similar, coordinated letter. Two other companies, Allianz and Virgin, sent broad statements indicating that they remain committed to previously published plans for emissions reductions. 

“These strategies are conceived and implemented over a long-time horizon, and in a way that is not dependent on how administrations change and how political winds may blow,” said Allianz in its statement.

The rest of the companies did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

A new era of silent CEOs

The reluctance to speak up isn’t surprising; companies worry they could become a target of retaliation by President Trump.

The reticence could also signal a shift in leadership style: 18 of the companies have a new CEO since the original letter, as part of reorganizations, mergers or other strategy shifts. Some notable executives who still hold the same title: JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon, Salesforce’s Marc Benioff, Tesla’s Elon Musk, Virgin’s Richard Branson and Walt Disney’s Robert Iger.

While the silence from business leaders on the need for action on climate change is deafening, some of these companies are finding ways to use their voice — 11 are among the 3,000 business signatories to America Is All In, a coalition that still champions the goal of cutting U.S. emissions in half by 2030 and reaching net zero by 2050. They are: 3M, Cargill, Coca-Cola, Dow, DuPont, Johnson & Johnson, PG&E, Royal DSM, Salesforce, Tesla and Unilever.

America Is All In issued a statement of support for the Paris Agreement on Jan. 20. While no individual company was quoted in that statement, the We Mean Business Coalition described abandoning the Paris Agreement as “a disservice to American businesses and people, opening the door for other major economies to attract greater investment and talent.”