Magen David Adom Group Cancels Benefit At Trump’s Mar-a-Lago

Mar-a-Lago dining room Image by Courtesy of Mar-a-Lago

By Daniel J. Solomon August 18, 2017

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Following President Trump’s remarks this week on Charlottesville, three charities are canceling benefits at his Florida Mar-a-Lago resort, including Israel’s emergency medical service, Magen David Adom.

“After considerable deliberation, AFMDA – an apolitical and humanitarian aid organization will not hold its 2018 Palm Beach Celebration of Life Gala at Mar-a-Lago,” wrote the American support arm of the Israeli organization.

It did not explain its reasoning for the decision, but the choice comes on the heels of a rough week for the president, after he blamed “both sides” for the violence in Charlottesville over the weekend.

Two other organizations have also canceled events at Mar-a-Lago, including the Cleveland Clinic. Known as the “winter White House,” the mansion functions as both a personal retreat for the president and a clubhouse for Palm Beach’s wealthy and well-connected.

Contact Daniel J. Solomon at [email protected] or on Twitter @DanielJSolomon

Daniel J. Solomon is the former Assistant to the Editor/News Writer at the Forward. Originally from Queens, he attended Harvard as an undergraduate, where he wrote his senior thesis on French-Jewish intellectual history. He is excited to have returned to New York after his time in Massachusetts. Daniel’s passions include folk music, cycling, and pointed argument.