GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A high-profile political photographer, David Hume Kennerly, resigned from the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation Board of Trustees this week after the committee decided not to honor Congresswoman Liz Cheney with an award.
Kennerly said this move is fueled by fear of retaliation from former President Donald Trump.
"Today, I am resigning from the Gerald R. Ford board as a trustee. If the foundation that bears the name of Gerald R. Ford won't stand up to this real threat to our democracy, who will?"
Those were the final words of Kennerly's five-page letter of resignation he sent out Tuesday.
Kennerly, a Pulitzer Prize winner, said he was one of President Ford's first appointees after getting sworn in as the 38th president of the United States.
20240409 GRF DHK Letter Final by WXMI on Scribd
He warns of a "tidal wave of timidity and fear" sweeping this country, believing the Board of Trustees for the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation is now falling victim.
This stems around the board's decision to not award Congresswoman Liz Cheney with the Gerald R. Ford Medal for Distinguished Public Service.
Cheney is a well-documented anti-Trump Republican, leading Kennerly to believe the board is letting fears of the former president influence its decision.
In the letter, Kennerly outlines Ford's history of standing up "for what he believed and never took the easy or expedient road."
Kennerly went on to offer an example of a time President Ford showed courage by making controversial decisions, such as when he pardoned Richard Nixon after Watergate.
FOX 17 received a statement from the board's Executive Director Gleaves Whitney that reads:
"The Ford family has been close to the Cheney family for five decades. So when the Ford Presidential Foundation asked Liz Cheney to serve on our Board of Trustees, we were honored that she joined our team in 2021. She continues to serve in good standing.
"Not only that, Liz Cheney meets all the criteria the Ford Presidential Foundation medal signifies—courage, integrity, and passion to serve the American people.
"The Foundation's decision not to give Congresswoman Liz Cheney the 2024 Gerald R. Ford Medal for Distinguished Public Service is not a reflection on her but on the law governing nonprofits. The Foundation's action this year in no way precludes her from serious consideration to receive the medal in a future year.
"The Foundation’s executive committee, guided by its legal counsel, concluded that it was not prudent to award the 2024 Ford medal to Liz Cheney. At the time the award was being discussed, it was publicly reported that Liz was under active consideration for a presidential run. Exercising its fiduciary responsibility, the executive committee concluded that giving the Ford medal to Liz in the 2024 election cycle might be construed as a political statement and thus expose the Foundation to the legal risk of losing its nonprofit status with the Internal Revenue Service.
"As stated by the IRS in its publication, “The Restriction of Political Campaign Intervention by Section 501(c)(3) Tax-Exempt Organizations”:
"Under the Internal Revenue Code, all section 501(c)(3) organizations are absolutely prohibited from directly or indirectly participating in, or intervening in, any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for elective public office. Contributions to political campaign funds or public statements of position (verbal or written) made on behalf of the organization in favor of or in opposition to any candidate for public office clearly violate the prohibition against political campaign activity. Violating this prohibition may result in denial or revocation of tax-exempt status and the imposition of certain excise taxes."
A representative for the board told FOX 17 it would not be commenting any further at this time.
Kennerly said he was potentially available for an interview. At his request, FOX 17 called his phone but left a voicemail and never heard back.
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