Obama-Appointed ‘Science Envoy’ Resigns Over Trump’s Charlottesville Response

Jack Crowe on August 23, 2017

An Obama-appointed Department of State science envoy resigned Wednesday in an act of protest against President Donald Trump’s reaction to the violence that occurred in Charlottesville.

Science envoy Daniel Kammen announced his resignation in a tweet, in which he said Trump’s refusal to exclusively condemn neo-Nazis for the violent clashes in Charlottesville “enables racism, sexism and harms our country and planet.” Science envoys work to “identify opportunities for sustained international cooperation” on science and technology issues, according to the State Department website.

While Kammen does not explicitly call for Trump’s impeachment, the first letter in each paragraph of the resignation letter spells the word “impeach.” Members of the President’s Committee On Arts And Humanities took a similar tact when they resigned in August, spelling out the word “resist” with the first letter of each paragraph of their resignation letter.

Kammen cites Trump’s “failure to condemn white supremacists and neo-Nazis” as the motivating factor behind his resignation. Trump came under fire for immediately pointing out that both the alt-right and the Antifa-aligned counter protestors were to blame for the violence. He did condemn neo-Nazis and white supremacists by name two days later, but has since doubled down on his initial reaction repeatedly saying “both sides” were to blame and further suggesting the “alt-left” bore some responsibility for the day’s tragic outcome.

The former science envoy aligns himself with a number of prominent public figures across the political spectrum, including GOP Sen. John McCain of Arizona and Women’s March leader Linda Sarsour. Kammen’s decision to include Sarsour among those he “stands with” against racism and sexism is noteworthy, considering her ties to known terrorist organizations and calls for her political opponents to have their their vaginas taken away.

Kammen concludes the letter by crediting Trump with harming Americans’ “quality of life” and the “sustainability of the planet.”

“Your actions to date have, sadly, harmed the quality of life in the United States, our standing abroad, and the sustainability of the planet,” he said.

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