(AFP) – US President Donald Trump has removed Doug Emhoff, husband of his former rival Kamala Harris, from the Holocaust Memorial Council board, drawing an angry reaction. Emhoff, who is married to the 2024 Democratic presidential nominee and former vice president, campaigned against anti-Semitism as part of the administration of Joe Biden, who appointed him to the board.
“Let me be clear: Holocaust remembrance and education should never be politicized,” Emhoff, who is Jewish, posted on Tuesday, confirming his dismissal. “To turn one of the worst atrocities in history into a wedge issue is dangerous — and it dishonors the memory of six million Jews murdered by Nazis that this museum was created to preserve.”
Since taking office, Trump has looked beyond politics to impose his brand of right-wing populism on cultural and educational institutions such as Washington’s prestigious Kennedy Center and Harvard University. He has also sought to settle scores with perceived adversaries — targeting law firms associated with his political foes, such as Emhoff’s employer, Willkie Farr & Gallagher.
Several other former officials removed from the Holocaust board include Biden’s White House chief of staff Ron Klain, domestic policy advisor Susan Rice, and an aide to former first lady Jill Biden, The New York Times reported. The White House Presidential Personnel Office sent an email to council members early Tuesday, according to the Times, which read: “(On) behalf of President Donald J. Trump, I am writing to inform you that your position as a member of the United States Holocaust Memorial Council is terminated, effective immediately.”
The council was established by Congress in 1980 to lead the country in commemorating the Holocaust, launching the Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1993. Emhoff said his commitment to Holocaust remembrance and education, as well as to combating hate and anti-Semitism, remained undiminished. “I will continue to speak out, to educate, and to fight hate in all its forms because silence is never an option,” he said.
© 2024 AFP
