Biden touts ‘encouraging progress’ in Rosh Hashanah statement

Correction: An earlier version of this report incorrectly described Douglas Emhoff’s title

President Biden celebrated progress made over the past year in the U.S. in a Sunday statement issued in honor of Rosh Hashanah.

Biden acknowledged the Jewish holiday as an important time of reflection, repentance, and renewal for people of the faith and the country as a whole.

“Just as individuals can seek renewal, so too can nations,” he wrote in a statement released by the White House. “This past year has seen encouraging progress for our nation.”

He cited more Americans getting jobs, a lower poverty rate for children and the waning COVID-19 pandemic as examples of how the U.S. has grown in recent months.

“At the same time, we have much more work to do to realize the values that bind us as Americans and to restore the soul of our nation,” he added.

Second gentleman Douglas Emhoff shared a message about the importance of fighting against hate and anti-Semitism in an op-ed for USA Today published Sunday to mark Rosh Hashanah.

Emhoff recalled a trip he and Vice President Kamala Harris took to the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, the site of a shooting that left 11 dead in 2018.

“As we look forward to the new year, we must continue working toward building an inclusive society for all that is free of bigotry and bias, and commit ourselves to combating antisemitism and hatred wherever it exists,” Emhoff wrote.

Emhoff and Harris made history last year by hosting the first Passover seder at the vice president’s official residence.

–Updated on Sept. 26 at 8:40 a.m.