There were some very strange appointments to federal positions during President Trump’s tenure in office. He tried (and failed) to make the CEO of Carl’s Jr. Secretary of Labor. Anthony Scaramucci’s 10-day tenure remains a running joke. But close to home, no Trump appointment was stranger than right-wing radio host Michael Savage as a member of the presidentially appointed Presidio Trust board of directors.
But that tenure is now over. The SF Chronicle reports that Savage has been removed from the Presidio Trust board. According to Mother Jones, “Savage had received a letter [last Thursday] morning informing him that President Joe Biden was requesting his resignation; if Savage did not resign, he would be fired by the end of the work day.”
Savage’s tenure was unremarkable. According to a separate Mother Jones report, Savage’s primary agenda on the board was the removal of a Presidio museum display honoring the victims of World War II Japanese internment camps, a display that was ultimately not removed. “I am so sick and tired of the vermin on the left debasing the military in my country that I could just scream about it,” Savage reportedly said on his radio program.
Per the Chronicle, there are four new board members, all semi-household names, and all fabulously wealthy people. These include real estate developer Mark Buell, Marcus & Millichap co-founder George Marcus, Obama-era Presidio board member Nicola Miner, and educator and Democratic donor Leni Eccles.
The Trust had a disastrous 2020, losing at least $20 million over lost tourism and rental revenue. It hopes to rebound with the return of tourism. The Presidio is one of the few national parks that does not receive federal appropriations, and generally makes revenue by renting its facilities.