The Trump administration fired several of former President Joe Biden’s appointees from the board that oversees the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum on Tuesday, including Doug Emhoff, former second gentleman and husband of former Vice President Kamala Harris, according to The New York Times, which first reported the dismissals.
“Today, I was informed of my removal from the United States Holocaust Memorial Council,” Emhoff said in a statement on Tuesday. “Holocaust remembrance and education should never be politicized. 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.”
“No divisive political decision will ever shake my commitment to Holocaust remembrance and education or to combatting hate and antisemitism. I will continue to speak out, to educate, and to fight hate in all its forms — because silence is never an option,” Emhoff added.
Emhoff, who is Jewish, has been a vocally against rising antisemitism, particularly after Hamas’ attacks on Israel in October 2023. The museum announced him and other Biden-era appointees in January.
Who were the other officials that served on the board?
Others removed from the board included Ron Klain, Biden’s first chief of staff; Tom Perez, former labor secretary and senior Biden adviser; and Susan Rice, who served as national security adviser under President Barack Obama and later led the Biden administration’s national strategy to combat antisemitism.
The 68-member U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council is composed of 55 presidential appointees, five members each from the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, and three ex-officio members representing the Departments of State, Interior, and Education, according to a January news release from the federal institution.
According to The New York Times, presidential appointments to the board typically serve five-year terms.
The board members were informed about their dismissal through email
CNN reported that the White House did not remove all of Biden’s appointees from the board. Mary Sprowls, who works in the Presidential Personnel Office, formally notified those affected of their dismissal in an email on Tuesday.
“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,” Sprowls wrote in an email obtained by CNN. “Thank you for your service.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement: “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.”
According to Politico, a spokesperson for the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum issued a brief statement regarding their ongoing work with the current administration.
”We look forward to continuing to advance our vitally important mission as we work with the Trump Administration,” the spokesperson said.
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