Congressional Leaders Condemn Deletion as ANCA Warns of Electoral Consequences Heading into 2026 Midterms and 2028 Presidential Race
<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) called out Vice President JD Vance\u2019s deletion of his X (Twitter) post acknowledging the Armenian Genocide during his visit to Armenia\u2019s Genocide Memorial, calling it a \u201cdisgraceful surrender to Turkish pressure\u201d that raises serious concerns among Armenian American voters heading into the 2026 midterm elections and 2028 presidential race.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After Vice President Vance visited the Armenian Genocide Memorial on Tuesday, February 10th, the @VP X (formerly Twitter) account posted: \u201cToday, Vice President Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance attended a wreath laying ceremony at the Armenian Genocide memorial to honor the victims of the 1915 Armenian genocide.\u201d That tweet was soon deleted and replaced with a retweet of VP Press Secretary Taylor Van Kirk\u2019s post that stripped all reference to the Armenian Genocide, instead stating, euphemistically: \u201c.@VP and @SLOTUS lay flowers at the eternal flame and sign the guest book on the final day of their visit to Armenia.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTurkey never tires of humiliating America,\u201d stated ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. \u201cThis time, forcing a sitting U.S. Vice President to delete his post about the Armenian Genocide. While it\u2019s no surprise to see Turkey still strong-arming global leaders to enforce its Armenian Genocide gag-rule, it is deeply troubling to witness Vice President Vance \u2013 a man who loudly proclaims solidarity with Christian victims of persecution \u2013 display such weakness in the face of this foreign pressure.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The White House @RapidResponse47 X (formerly Twitter) account also deleted a post featuring a reporter\u2019s question to Vice President Vance in Yerevan about the importance of his visit to the Armenian Genocide Memorial. Vice President Vance offered an evasive response: \u201c@VP: Well, we\u2019re going to visit some important sites to Azerbaijan tomorrow\u2026 I\u2019m the first Vice President to ever visit Armenia. They asked us to visit the site\u2026 I wanted to go and pay my respects.\u201d Video of the exchange is available here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n ANCA Policy Director Alex Galitsky called the second post deletion<\/strong><\/a> \u201can insult to the memory of the 1.5 million victims of the Armenian Genocide \u2013 and an affront to a community that fought tirelessly for decades to ensure recognition of that crime.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n White House Responds to Deletion of Armenian Genocide Reference<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n When Bloomberg News\u2019 Kate Sullivan, travelling as part of the White House press pool, asked about the deletion<\/strong><\/a> of the Vice President\u2019s Armenian Genocide post, a VP official stated the original tweet was \u201cposted in error by staff who are not part of the delegation.\u201d A VP spokesperson added: \u201cThis is an account managed by staff that primarily exists to share photos and videos of the Vice President\u2019s activities. For the Vice President\u2019s views on the substance of the question, I refer you to the comments he made earlier on the tarmac in response to the pool\u2019s question.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n At today\u2019s White House press briefing<\/strong><\/a>, AFP reporter Danny Kemp asked White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt about the deleted tweet. Leavitt stated \u201cno change in policy at this time,\u201d referencing the White House\u2019s April 24, 2025, Armenian Remembrance Day statement, where President Trump, under Turkish pressure, retreated from U.S. affirmation of the Armenian Genocide. The ANCA called that statement \u201ca shameful abrogation of our nation\u2019s responsibility to prevent Azerbaijan and Turkey\u2019s ongoing genocidal aggression against Christian Armenians.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n President Trump\u2019s non-recognition stands in opposition to President Joe Biden\u2019s recognition of the Armenian Genocide in April 2021 and throughout his Administration. The United States first recognized the Armenian Genocide in 1951 through a submission to the International Court of Justice. In 1981, President Ronald Reagan cited the Genocide in a Holocaust Remembrance statement. In 2019, both the U.S. House (H.Res.220) and Senate (S.Res.150) passed measures recognizing the Armenian Genocide with overwhelming bipartisan support. All 50 U.S. states have formally recognized the Armenian Genocide through resolutions or proclamations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The deletion of the Armenian Genocide post from Vice President Vance\u2019s X account was covered worldwide, with the ANCA\u2019s concerns spotlighted in CNN<\/strong><\/a>, Reuters<\/strong><\/a>, The Wall Street Journal<\/strong><\/a>, Yahoo News<\/strong><\/a>, The Hill<\/strong><\/a>, MediaIte<\/strong><\/a>, and Antiwar.com,<\/strong><\/a> among others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Congressional Leaders Condemn Deletion<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Congressional leaders swiftly condemned Vice President Vance\u2019s deletion of his Armenian Genocide acknowledgment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c1.5 million Armenians were killed in the Armenian Genocide. That truth cannot be erased,\u201d stated Sen. Ed Markey<\/strong><\/a> (D-MA). \u201cI\u2019ve fought to ensure the U.S. recognizes these crimes as genocide, and I will keep standing with the Armenian community against the Trump administration\u2019s efforts to rewrite history.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe Vice President\u2019s deletion of this post only deepens the pain of the Armenian community which saw this White House retreat on Armenian Genocide recognition,\u201d stated Sen. Adam Schiff<\/strong><\/a> (D-CA). \u201cAnother capitulation to Turkey, in such a sloppy manner as to invite further scrutiny of this administration\u2019s retreat on human rights and the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMore than 1.5 million Armenians were murdered during the Armenian Genocide,\u201d stated Sen. Jackie Rosen<\/strong><\/a> (D-NV). \u201cThe Trump Administration\u2019s refusal to acknowledge this dark chapter in history for what it was is a denial of the facts.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhen I visited Armenia as Speaker in 2022, our Congressional delegation stood at Tsitsernakaberd and spoke clearly and unapologetically about the Armenian Genocide \u2013 because truth matters,\u201d stated Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi<\/strong><\/a> (D-CA). \u201cThat truth was affirmed when the House overwhelmingly passed a bipartisan resolution recognizing the Armenian Genocide in 2019, and when President Biden showed moral leadership by formally acknowledging it in 2021 \u2013 a position shamefully reversed by the Trump Administration. It\u2019s deeply disappointing, though not surprising, to see the Vice President delete a post acknowledging that truth. Erasing history dishonors the victims and weakens our commitment to human rights everywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOver a million people were murdered and starved to death in the Armenian Genocide, and when the highest-level visit yet from an American official to the eternal flame honoring its victims took place, the Trump Administration once again couldn\u2019t bring themselves to call this crime by its proper name,\u201d stated Congressional Armenian Caucus Co-Chair Frank Pallone<\/strong><\/a> (D-NJ).<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s disturbing to see @VP Vance delete his post acknowledging the 1915 Armenian Genocide,\u201d said fellow Congressional Armenian Caucus Co-Chair Brad Sherman<\/strong><\/a> (D-CA). \u201cTo renege on the U.S.\u2019s yearslong rightful recognition of the genocide now is shameful and undermines the Trump Administration\u2019s own attempts to deescalate tensions in the region.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe Armenian Genocide is a fact. I helped lead a bipartisan coalition calling for U.S. recognition, which President Biden finally did in 2021,\u201d stated Rep. Jim McGovern<\/strong><\/a> (D-MA). \u201cBy deleting this post, @VP and @POTUS show they care more about their authoritarian buddies than the truth. Disgusting and pathetic.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAbsolutely cowardly behavior from @VP @JDVance,\u201d stated Rep. Laura Friedman<\/strong><\/a> (D-CA). \u201cYou don\u2019t get to lay a wreath at the Armenian Genocide memorial and then delete your post mentioning the genocide in order to appease Erdo\u011fan. Your actions are an insult to the memories of the victims.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe Armenian Genocide is a historical fact,\u201d stated Rep. Judy Chu<\/strong><\/a> (D-CA). \u201cVice President Vance can delete his post, but he can\u2019t erase history. His decision to ignore the facts is beyond disrespectful to the Armenian community and the millions killed in the Armenian Genocide.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n