Orange County Democratic party leader resigns after post praising Ho Chi Minh
Jeff LeTourneau resigned Thursday from leadership roles with the Democratic Party of Orange County after facing sharp criticism for sharing a Facebook post that praised Ho Chi Minh, the late communist leader of Vietnam.
The longtime progressive activist initially said he wouldn’t step down, arguing that expressing an unpopular political opinion wasn’t grounds for removal from office. He declined to comment Thursday on why he changed his mind, saying only that a settlement agreement required him to defer all questions to the party spokeswoman.
Other party leaders said LeTourneau agreed to step down after the group held a heated, five-hour discussion Wednesday night.
Critics say when LeTourneau shared a pro-Minh message he opened old wounds for Vietnamese refugees and undid years of hard work by the Democratic Party to win over local Vietnamese American voters. They added that the move gave Republicans ammunition to paint all Democrats as communists, with online commenters saying things like, “Are you surprised? The left openly stands for communism and all the failed states that stupidly tried it.”
Read more: https://www.ocregister.com/2020/09/03/orange-county-democratic-party-leader-resigns-after-post-praising-ho-chi-minh/
My apologies for the source, but I believe that local media coverage provides a solid basis for discussion.
