Five Brand USA board members, including the board chair, were abruptly fired via email on Friday, according to three sources familiar with the dismissals.
The decision came from the White House, according to one of the sources.
The five board members relieved of their Brand USA board duties were: Chair Elliott Ferguson, CEO of Destination DC; Vice Chair Lauren Bailey, CEO of Upward Projects; Kristen Esposito, principal of Esposito Global Partners; Secretary Allen Orr, founder of Orr Immigration Law; and Tim Mapes, chief marketing and communications officer at Delta Air Lines.
The board has 11 members, who are appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce with input from the U.S. Secretaries of State and Homeland Security.
“Trump is turning over the board,” one of the sources said.
Ferguson, the board chair, was only a few months into his one-year term.
When asked about the firings, a Brand USA spokesperson told Skift: “Brand USA has no