Ronald Sanders, who served as a member and chair of the Federal Salary Council, tendered his resignation on Monday to the director of White House Presidential Personnel, John McEntee, according to a letter obtained by CNN.

“On its surface, the President’s Executive Order purports to serve a legitimate and laudable purpose … that is, to hold career Federal employees ‘more accountable’ for their performance,” Sanders wrote. “However, it is clear that its stated purpose notwithstanding, the Executive Order is nothing more than a smokescreen for what is clearly an attempt to require the political loyalty of those who advise the President, or failing that, to enable their removal with little if any due process.”