On Monday, Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff landed himself in hot water with the right and even some on the left after a tweet he posted where he and his wife, Vice President Kamala Harris, were pictured lighting the first candle of a menorah and where Emhoff, who is Jewish, told a Hanukkah origins story that, to put it charitably, is at odds with reality.

For those who missed it, here's what Emhoff wrote in the since-deleted post:

The story of Hanukkah and the story of the Jewish people has always been one of hope and resilience. In the Hanukkah story, the Jewish people were forced into hiding. No one thought they would survive or that the few drops of oil they had would last.

But they survived and the oil kept burning.

During those eight days in hiding, they recited their prayers and continued their traditions. That’s why Hanukkah means dedication. It was during those dark nights that the Maccabees dedicated themselves to maintaining hope and faith in the oil, each other, and their Judaism.

In these dark times, I think of that story.

As my colleague Nick Arama noted at the time, though, Emhoff's critics pointed out that the story "was not about hiding but Jews fighting back, about a victory of the Jewish people over an effort to try to crush them and their traditions by an invader force."

In an update to this story, Emhoff posted a new tweet some 24 hours later, where the origins story was left out altogether. Put in its place was boilerplate language you'd see from any random politico rather than the first Jewish spouse of a vice president in American history:

It was an honor to celebrate Hanukkah at the White House last night with President @JoeBiden and members of the Jewish community. Hanukkah is an important reminder that we can always find light and hope, even in times of darkness. pic.twitter.com/ZW074P1P78

— Doug Emhoff (@DouglasEmhoff) December 12, 2023

I guess I don't understand why this has to be so hard. I mean, tell the story right the first time and stop worrying about whether or not you're going to offend woke, anti-Israel ceasefire proponents, for whom nothing short of capitulation and subservience to their warped viewpoints will suffice.

The thing, too, is that Emhoff seemingly knows that equivocating on these matters or trying to otherwise sanitize the issue is the absolute last thing any so-called leader should be doing, judging by what he's also said about calling out antisemitism:

Let’s be clear: When Jews are targeted because of their beliefs or identity, that is antisemitism, and it must be condemned unequivocally and without context.

As we've reported before, many Democrat public figures have been bizarrely twisting themselves into pretzels to try and defend some of the worst among them like Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), whose antisemitism has been well-documented. 

While Emhoff hasn't gone that far, in trying to coddle Hamas Caucus types by distorting the meaning and origins of Hanukkah so they don't read too much into it, is not much better than other Democrats (including other Jewish Dems) who have tried (and failed) pathetically to make excuses for the growing antisemitism within their ranks. 

Though there is near-unity from Republicans on the subject of the Israel-Hamas war, on the Democrat side the story is much different. There are staunch pro-Israel Democrats and there are rabid anti-Israel Democrats. There is and should be no middle ground there, and considering Emhoff's powerful position and platform, he might want to think long and hard again before putting out milquetoast statements that muddy the waters on an issue where there should be zero doubt as to where one stands.

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