First the president’s business panel resigned. Then the arts and humanities. Then he sacked the lot

This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

Resigning from an administration can consign a career to oblivion. But sometimes staying on can be an even worse look.

Early last week, following President Donald Trump’s failure to condemn the white supremacists in Charlottesville, the great and the good queued up to quit the White House.

Serial resignations by the chief executives on the president’s business advisory panel, none of whom criticised Mr Trump directly, were followed by the decision of the full Arts and Humanities Committee to stand down.

Publishing their collective letter of resignation on Twitter, the commissioners explicitly accused him of supporting “hate groups and terrorists”, and undermining civil rights. They attacked the philistinism of his budget; and they said they resigned in order to avoid the taint of complicity with a man they considered a threat to the US.

Even more striking than the forceful language, though, lay a more subtle rebellion, deliberately designed to draw attention to Mr Trump’s notorious lack of interest in the written word. The first letter of the first word of each paragraph spelled out the word “resist”. All White House advisory panels were disbanded.

Constitutional proprieties are not easily diverted, however. Revolt spread to the State Department. On Wednesday its science envoy Dr Daniel Kammen resigned in protest at the president’s racism and sexism.

That adieu spelled out “impeach”.