- Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman called the violence in Washington, DC, which followed Trump’s speech Wednesday, an “uprising.”
- “I am shocked and shocked at the attempt by this mob to undermine our constitution,” he said in a statement to Insider.
- Schwarzman previously defended Trump’s lawsuits during a phone call in November with dozens of Fortune 500 CEOs.
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Blackstone CEO, chairman and co-founder Stephen Schwarzman on Wednesday denounced Trump supporters’ violent attacks on the US Capitol after following the president’s inflammatory rhetoric.
“The uprising that followed the president’s remarks today is appalling and an insult to the democratic values we as Americans highly value,” Schwarzman said in a statement to Insider.
“I am shocked and appalled by the attempt by this mob to undermine our constitution. As I said in November, the outcome of the election is very clear and there must be a peaceful transition of power,” he added.
Schwarzman’s criticism is remarkable given his close ties to Trump and the previous defense of his efforts to challenge the US presidential election results.
In late November, Schwarzman admitted that Trump had lost the election. Just weeks before, when more than 24 CEOs of Fortune 500 companies met to discuss what to do if Trump refused to leave the White House, Schwarzman defended Trump’s unfounded election lawsuits, according to the Associated Press.
During the call, Schwarzman disputed the proposal by other executives that there was a possibility of a coup, he reiterated at least one of the president’s unfounded allegations of voter fraud and, according to the AP, expressed skepticism about the Pennsylvania results.
Schwarzman was already an ally of Trump and a staunch defender back in 2016, when he headed a group of business leaders to regularly advise then-elected President Trump on economic matters.