American Thinker:
In March 2020 President Trump appointed talk show host and bestselling author Michael Savage (legal name: Michael Weiner) to the board of directors of the Presidio Trust, which administers the 1,500-acre park along the shore of San Francisco Bay, including the San Francisco approach to the Golden Gate Bridge. Formerly a military base, the park occupies some of the most scenic and valuable real estate in the world. Nancy Pelosi and her husband Paul own a home that abuts the southern border of the Presidio.
A botanist with a master’s degree in the field, Savage was highly qualified to oversee the gardens and plant life of the park, certainly as compared to other members of the board.
Yet, yesterday, Savage woke up to receive a letter from White House Office of Presidential Personnel director Catherine Russell demanding his resignation from the board and threatening to fire him by the end of the day if he did not comply. Via Newsmax:
Russell wrote:
“Dear Mr. Weiner,
On behalf of President Biden, I am writing to request your resignation as a Member of the Presidio Trust, Board of Directors. Please submit your resignation to me by the close of business today. Should we not receive your resignation, your position with the Board will be terminated effective 6:00PM today. Thank you.”
The letter was forwarded to Weiner from Katie Petrelius, a Russell assistant:
“I am writing today to request your resignation from the Presidio Trust Board effective immediately on behalf of Ambassador Russell, Director of the Office of Presidential Personnel. If we do not receive your resignation by end of day today, you will be terminated.”
As anyone who has ever listened to Savage on the radio or his current podcast would guess, Savage refused to resign. He calls the move a “purge.” Savage told Newsmax that he thinks he knows why his resignation was demanded:
While there are three Trump appointees on the board, Savage says he is being singled out for his seeking to keep a salute to God and the military at the former military post.
“God & the Soldier at the Presidio was my most recent suggested exhibit and may have triggered the purge,” Savage, whose legal name is Michael Weiner, told Newsmax via phone after receiving the letter from White House Office of Presidential Personnel Director Catherine Russell.
“I will not be forced to resign!” he vowed defiantly, adding he wanted to “emphasize how important this position is to me personally.”
“I have spent over 40 years working on environmental issues. The Presidio lands are a public trust that must be cared for by ardent conservationists and preservationists — not by political hacks of the type Biden will install.”
So far, there is no news that I have been able to find on any follow-through on the threat to fire him. I suspect that if such a move were made, Savage would pursue legal avenues of recourse. Can Presidio Trust board members be fired without cause?
