Latest news with #DougEmhoff
Daily Mail
24-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Why ex-US Vice President Kamala Harris was dining at Sydney restaurant seven months on from her defeat at the hands of Donald Trump
Former US vice president Kamala Harris was seen cosying up inside a ritzy Sydney restaurant this weekend several months on from her devastating US election defeat. The 60-year-old former Democrat nominee who lost the presidential race to Donald Trump was filmed dining alongside her entertainment lawyer husband Doug Emhoff at Mosman's Bather's Pavilion in the heart of Sydney's lower north shore. The venue is where a certain Democrat colleague dined when he visited Australia in 2023 for his 'An Evening with Barack Obama ' tour, which was $200-a-pop for a standard seat, and $895 for a 'platinum' spot. Following the dinner Harris arrived for a commercial flight from Sydney Airport to the Gold Coast on Saturday where she is the guest of honour at a star-studded real estate speaking engagement. Harris is one of 32 speakers booked to present at the Australasian Real Estate Conference hosted over two days at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre. Organisers of the event are expected to turbo-charge their security measures to account for the surprise booking where the more than 4000 real estate agents in attendance are expected to undergo security screening. Four-time Olympic gold medallist swimmer Ariarne Titmus, big wave surfer Mark Mathews and British entrepreneur and influencer Steven Bartlett are also billed to present at the conference. While Harris' speaking fee has not been disclosed, delegates will be billed between $995 and $1695 for a two-day pass to the event. Harris was dressed in black on both sightings but traded her heels for a $1350 pair of white Celine sneakers at the domestic terminal. When former first couple Barack and Michelle Obama patronised the heritage-listed Balmoral venue in March, 2023 the menu items included Coral Trout, WA Marron, Handmade Fettucine and Sydney Rock Oysters. Led by executive chef Aaron Ward, the beachside restaurant features a 350-strong wine list with seasonal mains in 2025 ranging from a $49 roasted eggplant to a $65 Rangers Valley wagyu. Harris' visit was a more low-key stop-in than that of the Obama's ahead of which a crowd of about 200 revellers watched on as the couple made for the venue's private 'Good Room' for lunch. It was a rare public sighting of Harris who has kept a relatively low profile since she and her would be VP Tim Walz were resoundingly wiped out by returning Republican president Donald Trump in November. Trump secured wins in all seven swing states, improving on his 2016 victory over former Democrat nominee Hilary Clinton making him the second president in US history to serve non-consecutive terms following Grover Cleveland in the late 19th century. Though Harris has been tight-lipped on her plans for the future, rumour has abounded she may run as governor of California in a bid to oust the term-limited Gavin Newsom. Branded as Harris' first speaking engagement in Australia, promotional material for the Gold Coast event described her as a 'trailblazer through her entire career, committed in her vision for ensuring all Americans can climb the ladder of economic opportunity.' Harris is pictured arriving at Sydney's domestic airport on Saturday ahead of a scheduled speaking engagement at a real estate conference on the Gold Coast Many of Kamala Harris´ supporters and detractors alike think she'd have better odds running for California governor rather than president a third time. No other candidate in California could match her résumé of having served as San Francisco district attorney, state attorney general, U.S. senator and vice president. Beyond being expected to make a decision by the end of summer, Harris said little about her future. She told a crowd in Orange County in April: 'I´ll see you out there. I´m not going anywhere.' To make another run for president, Harris would have to convince national Democrats that she's the face of the party´s future, despite losing to President Donald Trump last year. She's also tied to former President Joe Biden, whom Democrats are increasingly criticizing as new books drive further discussion about his age and physical and mental readiness during his time in office. The 2028 presidential contest is expected to attract a large field, likely to include Newsom. Any candidate will have to unify a fractious Democratic Party with low approval ratings and struggling to slow Trump´s agenda in Washington.
The Independent
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Rob Reiner shouted at Doug Emhoff during debate party that Biden would ‘lose our f***ing democracy,' book claims
Tensions were high at a Hollywood debate watch party on June 27, 2024, when director Rob Reiner lashed out at then-second gentleman Doug Emhoff over President Joe Biden 's disastrous debate performance. A report on the confrontation appears in the new book Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again by CNN anchor Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson of Axios. Reiner is said to have exclaimed that the U.S. could 'lose our f***ing democracy,' as a result of Biden's performance at the June 27 debate against now-President Donald Trump, according to reporting by The Hill. The incident occurred at the home of James Costos, the former HBO executive and President Barack Obama 's ambassador to Spain. 'The gathering had originally been planned as a fundraiser for the Biden Victory Fund, but then the debate was scheduled for the same night, so the hosts turned it into a fancy and hopefully fun debate watch party, with people sitting in three or four different rooms,' the book states. In addition to Reiner and Emhoff, actor and activist Jane Fonda was also present, in addition to Democratic governors Andy Beshear of Kentucky, JB Pritzker of Illinois, and Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan. As President Biden spoke in a weak voice, repeatedly stumbled over answers, misspoke, and lost his train of thought, the evening quickly turned into a 'debate watch horror show.' 'A few minutes into it, Reiner, in the main living room, stated plainly: 'We are f***ed!'' Tapper and Thompson wrote, adding that he 'became angry. Soon he was venting, standing, full of fury.' 'He seemed to be looking at Emhoff. Daggers.' 'We're going to lose our f***ing democracy because of you!' the When Harry Met Sally director is said to have shouted at Emhoff. ''Because of me?' Emhoff thought,' the book states. CNN reported on the incident a few days after it occurred, but in less detail, noting: ' Rob Reiner was screaming about losing and Jane Fonda had tears in her eyes, according to people in the room.' The first presidential debate of the 2024 election, in which Biden struggled from the get-go and Trump repeated a barrage of lies and misinformation, was watched by 51.27 million viewers. It sparked 'deep panic' among Democrats, to the delight of supporters of Trump, and ultimately led to Biden stepping aside as the party's nominee in favor of Vice President Kamala Harris. On July 10, George Clooney, who just weeks before headlined a star-studded fundraiser that raked in $28 million for Biden's re-election campaign, penned an emotional op-ed telling his 'friend' in no uncertain terms to take himself out of the 2024 race. After another 11 days of mounting calls for him to step aside, Biden pulled out on July 21, putting Harris, with Emhoff by her side, at the top of the ticket.
Times
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Times
Trump appoints ex-Real Housewives star to Holocaust Museum board
President Trump has named a Real Housewives of New Jersey star to the board of the US Holocaust Memorial Museum, in one of a string of controversial appointments. Siggy Flicker, a podcaster and influencer whose stepson was charged in connection with the January 6 riot at the US Capitol in 2021, was named among five new board members after Joe Biden's picks were fired by Trump. Doug Emhoff, the husband of the former vice-president, Kamala Harris, was among the board members dismissed last month. It was the first time that a sitting president had removed board members at the museum in Washington before their five-year term was completed. Flicker, 57, an Israeli-American who starred in two seasons of the hit reality show as well as
New York Times
09-05-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Holocaust Museum Board Member Condemns Silence on Trump Firings
A member of the board that oversees the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum wrote a blistering letter to the other board members on Friday condemning the silence of the institution after President Trump's recent firings and invoking the lead-up to the Holocaust as he warned about the dangers of not speaking out. In late April, Mr. Trump fired a number of board members appointed by former President Joseph R. Biden Jr., including Doug Emhoff, the husband of former Vice President Kamala Harris, as well as other former senior administration officials. The firings were widely criticized as an effort to politicize an organization dedicated to educating the world about one of the worst atrocities in history. But the museum's statement at the time made no mention of the terminations and instead emphasized an eagerness to work with the Trump administration. Kevin Abel, who was appointed to the museum's board by Mr. Biden in 2023, wrote in his letter on Friday that Mr. Trump's 'campaign of retribution' had been met with troubling 'public silence' by the museum. Mr. Abel wrote that while it was 'understandable' that museum leaders might fear speaking out at the risk of losing funding, it was vital to do so. 'At this juncture of rising threats and a swirling atmosphere of hatred, it is ever more imperative that the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, the one institution that can most credibly call out the administration's attack of its Council for what it is, not choose to remain silent,' Mr. Abel wrote, invoking Martin Niemöller's words 'about the danger of not speaking out,' which he noted were 'inscribed on the wall of the Museum's permanent exhibition.' The message sparked a flurry of responses on Friday morning from fellow board members on a large email chain. Mr. Abel wrote in his initial letter to other board members, 'The dissonant message cannot be lost on us, however, when a Holocaust museum remains silent in the wake of acts of retribution and messages of hate emanating from an administration that has systematically torn at the fabric of our society's protections and norms and has shown no sign of restraint in its enthusiastic promotion of uncivility.' He went on: 'The Holocaust teaches us that by using fear to buy silence, the Nazis were able to incrementally isolate, demonize, and then murder millions of Jews.' Mr. Abel told the The New York Times in an email that he remained on the board and planned to stay unless his correspondence resulted in being pushed out. He declined further comment. A representative for the museum did not immediately respond to a request for comment. On the email chain, Daniel Huff, whom Mr. Trump appointed to the board in 2020, during his first term, objected to Mr. Abel's invocation of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, an anti-Nazi dissident. Mr. Abel had quoted his famed line, 'Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.' 'Everyone is citing Bonhoeffer,' Mr. Huff wrote. 'Ok, if anyone on here spoke up publicly when Biden broke the seal by dismissing Trump appointees from boards en masse in 2021 (e.g. Paul Packer from the American Heritage Commission), send me proof and I will personally call White House PPO and ask that you be reinstated. That is a bona fide offer.' In 2021, a spokesman for the museum suggested to CNN that the removal of council members by a new administration would be unprecedented. Another response to Mr. Abel came from Kimberly Marteau Emerson, who wrote that she had been one of the 13 members fired late last month. She said that she, too, was 'deeply disappointed by the Museum's resounding silence both publicly and internally.' Ms. Emerson wrote that she had found herself thinking often about Thomas Mann, who she described as 'the German intellectual whose public criticism of the Nazi regime led him to exile from Germany in 1933.' 'I have, in particular, considered his 1943 speech on BBC where he said, 'Tolerance becomes a crime when applied to evil,'' she wrote. 'Mann is challenging us to consider silence not as safety, but as moral risk. Silence is self-censorship framed as self-protection. But how do you draw the line between self-protection and moral abdication?' The chain of emails prompted Stuart E. Eizenstat, the chair of the board, to weigh in. 'We are all appointed by the President and can be removed by the President,' he wrote, adding, 'Communications like this can be counterproductive and could have unintended consequences that could hurt the Museum.'
Bloomberg
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Mamdani Takes Aim at Affordability With NYC Mayoral Run
Ella Emhoff, the stepdaughter of failed presidential candidate Kamala Harris, officially backed Democratic socialist candidate Zohran Mamdani for New York City mayor on Sunday ahead of his Brooklyn rally, the New York Post reported. Emhoff, whose father is former second gentleman Doug Emhoff, shared a video on Instagram of herself and Mamdani together ahead of the candidate's speech. During Mamdani's speech, he once again called for a rent freeze, universal childcare and city-owned grocery stores while slamming President Donald Trump and taking a shot at mayoral frontrunner Andrew Cuomo. Mamdani's platform also aims to strengthen New Yorkers' social safety net and increase access to childcare services, while targeting high-income earning companies and individuals with tax hikes. The sitting representative for the 36th district of the New York State Assembly and NYC mayoral hopeful speaks Tom Keene and Tim Stenovec on Bloomberg Radio. (Source: Bloomberg)
