MSNBC’s Jen Psaki sat down with Doug Emhoff in Wilmington, North Carolina, following a campaign event about Vice President Kamala Harris’ economic plans.
Psaki shared a preview of the interview, which focused on Emhoff’s connection to his Jewish faith and his efforts to fight antisemitism on “The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell” on Thursday night.
The wide-ranging interview will air in full at 12 p.m. Sunday on “Inside with Jen Psaki.”
Here are four takeaways from the first look:
Fighting antisemitism is personal and raw for Emhoff
The second gentleman spoke about how important his faith is to him and how difficult it is for him to publicly confront antisemitism and speak out on behalf of the Israeli hostages held by Hamas.
“It’s something that I’ve been working on … speaking about, meeting with released hostages [and] hostage families,” Emhoff said. “It’s intense, and a lot of times I don’t want to do it. It’s too raw. It’s too emotional for me.”
Harris pushed her husband to speak out
Emhoff shared that Harris has pushed him to be even more vocal about antisemitism.
He emphasized Harris’ dedication to the issue, adding that “she is the one who keeps pushing me out there because of the responsibility that I have in this role and because she cares about these issues.”
Emhoff also spoke about his commitment to continuing the fight against antisemitism during Harris’ administration if she is elected.
“I take being the first Jewish White House principal ever very seriously,” Emhoff said. “So when we win, and I am the first Jewish first gentleman, I’m going to continue to speak out very loudly.”
Emhoff is concerned about Jewish Americans being targeted as a result of Trump’s rhetoric
Emhoff said former President Donald Trump should be taken at face value when it comes to his increasingly hateful rhetoric.
Asked by Psaki whether he worries Trump is putting a target on the backs of Jewish Americans, Emhoff said: “He is. I mean, take him at his word. He lies about a lot of things, but you’ve got to take him at his word on things like this.”
Trump’s refusal to disavow Robinson is ‘pure cowardice’
Emhoff also shared his unvarnished thoughts about North Carolina GOP gubernatorial nominee Mark Robinson’s racist comments and Trump’s refusal to disavow him, saying “it’s pure cowardice” and adding that Robinson is “clearly unfit [and] unhinged.”
“The fact that Donald Trump was right here in Wilmington, right where I’m sitting, where he couldn’t disavow Mark Robinson … it’s just shameful,” Emhoff said. “Donald Trump’s the guy who said, ‘This guy is a star.’ He said, ‘He’s Martin Luther King Jr. on steroids.’ [He] hasn’t disavowed any of that. … Those are the types of candidates that he’s supporting, and we can’t have it. This shows you yet another of the many, many examples of why Donald Trump is just unfit for any job, let alone president of the United States.”
Jen Psaki’s full interview with Doug Emhoff will air at 12 p.m. ET Sunday on “Inside with Jen Psaki.”
