How a conservative foundation 'tarnished its image' by bowing to Trump: ex-Gerald Ford photographer

Veteran photojournalist David Hume Kennerly spent more than 20 years on the trustee board of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation, and he served as White House photographer for President Gerald Ford himself in the mid-1970s.

But on April 9, Kennerly resigned from the board to express his disgust after the Foundation decided against giving conservative former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyoming) its Gerald R. Ford Medal for Distinguished Public Service — a decision Kennerly slammed as an act of cowardice. The Ford Foundation, according to Kennerly, was afraid of offending former President Donald Trump.

In an article published by The Atlantic on May 1, Kennerly, now 77, stresses that his resignation was about more than "valiant" Cheney — it was about taking a stand against "authoritarianism."

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"Each year, the Foundation awards its Gerald R. Ford Medal for Distinguished Public Service, recognizing an individual who embodies Ford's high ideals: integrity, honesty, candor, strength of character, determination in the face of adversity, among other attributes," Kennerly explains. "Past winners have included John Paul Stevens, George H. W. Bush, Jimmy Carter, Colin Powell, and Bob and Elizabeth Dole. This year, in my capacity as a trustee, I pushed hard for former Rep. Liz Cheney to receive the recognition."

The photojournalist adds, "After the January 6 insurrection, Cheney famously helped lead the push to impeach President Donald Trump."

Ford Foundation Executive Director Gleaves Whitney said that giving Cheney the award would not have been "prudent" — an explanation Kennerly considers weak and disingenuous.

"Translation: The Foundation was afraid," Kennerly argues. "In another statement, Whitney said that Cheney could be considered for the award in the future. That was not only totally embarrassing, but too late. I believe the Foundation did what it did because of the same pressures hollowing out many Republican institutions and weakening many conservative leaders across America — the fear of retaliation from the forces of Trumpism, forces that deeply loathe Cheney and the values she represents."

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Kennerly adds, "Fear that President No. 45 might become No. 47. Fear that wealthy donors might be on Trump's team overtly or covertly and might withhold money from the Foundation. Fear of phantom circumstances."

When the Foundation decided against giving Cheney the Gerald R. Ford Medal for Distinguished Public Service, Kennerly laments, it "tarnished the image of its namesake."

"My resignation is about more than giving one valiant person an award," the photojournalist stresses. "America is where it is today because of all the people and organizations that have committed small acts of cowardice like that of the Ford Presidential Foundation's executive committee…. (Gerald R.) Ford could not have envisioned the threat to democracy that America now faces, but he would have been encouraged by a bright light named Liz Cheney — someone who is fighting hard, sometimes alone, for the Constitution that Ford defended just as courageously."

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David Hume Kennerly's full article for The Atlantic is available at this link (subscription required).