Doug Emhoff speaks at the Democratic National Committee’s holiday reception at the Willard Hotel in Washington, DC, 15 December 2024. Photo:Jose Luis Magana/AP
Donald Trump’s administration has fired Doug Emhoff, the husband of former US Vice President Kamala Harris, from the US Holocaust Memorial Museum’s supervisory board. This was reported by The Guardian.
Emhoff was appointed to the board in January 2024 by President Joe Biden, along with 11 others, including former White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain and First Lady’s adviser Anthony Bernal. On Tuesday, 29 April, all three were officially notified of their dismissal.
“Turning the memory of one of the worst tragedies in history into a political issue is dangerous and demeaning to the memory of the six million Jews murdered by the Nazis,” Doug Emhoff said on the social media site X.
He led the Biden administration’s efforts to counter anti-Semitism. His ancestors, as Emhoff himself noted, fled persecution in Poland in the early 20th century.
The term of office of museum board members is usually five years. The Trump administration has not officially explained the reasons for the dismissal. However, White House spokeswoman Carolyn Levitt told NPR that Trump “looks forward to appointing new individuals who will not only honour the memory of Holocaust victims but also be strong supporters of Israel.”
