CALIFORNIA: Indian-American professor at the University of California Berkeley’s School of Law has quit US President Donald Trump's advisory boards and councils. Sonia Katyal resigned from the Commerce Department's Digital Economy Board of Advisors, initiated by former president Barack Obama, to help the federal government navigate the challenges of an emerging economy.
Over half of the members of the advisory board quit due to Trump's controversial comments on the white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, on August 11 to 12. He had blamed counter-protestors and rally supporters for the violence that claimed the life of a young white counter-protestor. Sister of former Acting Solicitor Neal Katyal, Sonia was an inaugural member of the DEBA. She had joined the Berkeley faculty 2015 from Fordham Law School, where she served as the associate dean for research. She is also named as one of the top 35 most-cited intellectual property law professors in the country and has several national awards to her name.
Another Indian-American to quit from the President's council is data scientist D J Patil. He made an official announcement on Twitter, saying, “I can confirm that I have resigned as a member of the National Infrastructure Advisory Council. Critical infra needs to be taken seriously.” Reports suggested that the group of seven resigned in a joint letter issued to Trump, accusing him of ignoring national security matters.
Comprising of a quarter of the council, the group that looks into national cybersecurity. They cited several shortfalls in the Trump administration’s approach to cybersecurity as well as broader concerns about the “moral infrastructure” of the country. In the letter, they wrote, “The moral infrastructure of our nation is the foundation on which our physical infrastructure is built. The administration’s actions undermine that foundation. Your actions have threatened the security of the homeland I took an oath to protect.”
