Ivanka Trump is reportedly considering Indra Nooyi’s name for World Bank President.
Nooyi has been a vocal critic of Donald Trump during the 2016 Presidential election.
She was also part of a Trump advisory group that protested against his remarks during the Charlottesville violence.
Given this uneasy relationship, it seems unlikely that this deal will get closed either way.
Former Pepsico CEO Indra Nooyi is currently being considered for the position of World Bank President. The New York Times reported that Nooyi has been approached as an administration ally by Ivanka Trump.
The report clarified that the decision making process for World Bank is fluid and in its initial stages. Positions can change and even frontrunners can fall off the race before the President makes his selection. Trump has a reputation for going by gut feeling while making a choice.
Ivanka Trump, the President’s eldest daughter, is playing a role in the selection of a nominee. She has praised Indra Nooyi on Twitter after the latter stepped down as PepsiCo CEO after a span of 12 years.
The great @IndraNooyi is stepping down as PepsiCo CEO, after 12 yrs.
Indra, you are a mentor + inspiration to so many, myself included. I am deeply grateful for your friendship. Thank you for your passionate engagement on issues that benefit the people of this country, and beyond— Ivanka Trump (@IvankaTrump) August 7, 2018
However, the twist in the tale is Indra Nooyi’s past history with Donald Trump. Though she did not publicly endorse any candidate during the 2016 Presidential elections, Nooyi had said that Trump’s win led to several questions among her daughters and employees.
During an interview with NYT, Ms Nooyi commented, “Our employees are all crying. And the question that they’re asking, especially those who 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.”
Later a Pepsi spokesperson clarified that Nooyi had talked about a group of employees she had spoken to and was not referring to all employees. But it is a known fact that Indra Nooyi was a strong supporter of Hillary Clinton for presidency.
She also criticized remarks made by Trump on women during the Presidential campaign trail, stating, “Forget about the Pepsi brand. How dare we talk about women that way. If we don’t nip this in the bud it is going to be a lethal force in society.”
After Trump’s election, Nooyi also briefly served on the Strategic & Policy Council, formed to advise the President on economic issues. In August, she along with other CEOs chose to disband the council in protest against Trump’s remarks over white supremacist violence in Charlottesville, Va.
The President pre-empted them by shutting it down himself along with another protesting business group – the Manufacturing Jobs Initiative. He tweeted, “Rather than putting pressure on the businesspeople of the Manufacturing Council & Strategy & Policy Forum, I am ending both. Thank you all!”
Given such an uneasy history, will Trump seriously consider Nooyi’s name for the World Bank nomination. And if he does, will she really want it at all?
