Not even the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council has been spared from President Donald Trump‘s sweeping cuts.
Doug Emhoff, Kamala Harris’ husband, was booted from the council’s Board of Trustees along with 11 others who were appointed by former President Joe Biden.
“Today, I was informed of my removal from the United States Holocaust Memorial Council,” Emhoff, who is Jewish himself, announced in a statement Tuesday.
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“Let me be clear: Holocaust remembrance and education should never be politicized,” he said. “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.”
Emhoff has been a fierce advocate against antisemitism, convening roundtables with Jewish leaders across the country and attending events focused on Holocaust remembrance and religious tolerance.
“No divisive political decision will ever shake my commitment to Holocaust remembrance and education or to combatting hate and antisemitism,” he said. “I will continue to speak out, to educate, and to fight hate in all its forms — because silence is never an option.”
The 11 other board members fired by Trump included Biden’s first chief of staff Ron Klain, former Labor Secretary Tom Perez, Biden’s top domestic policy adviser Susan Rice, and Jill Biden’s senior adviser Anthony Bernal.
Presidential appointees to the Holocaust Memorial Council serve five-year terms. The council is composed of 55 members appointed by the president, 10 lawmakers, and three ex officio members from the Departments of Education, Interior, and State.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement that “President Trump looks forward to appointing new individuals who will not only continue to honor the memory of those who perished in the Holocaust, but who are also steadfast supporters of the State of Israel.”
