“The new Rasmussen Poll, one of the most accurate in the 2016 Election, just out with a Trump 50% Approval Rating.That’s higher than O’s #’s!” the president tweeted, referencing himself in third person. Gu snarked back. “Covfefe: The same guy who doesn’t proofread his Twitter handles the nuclear button,” he tweeted. The president then blocked Gu, but the doctor’s dramatic rise on Twitter had already started. Gu quickly found popularity for being an outspoken progressive in a profession where many colleagues avoid politics altogether. Then, two months after his barb at the president, Gu went viral again. Taking a knee like Kaepernick That was September 2017, when Gu tweeted a photo of himself, wearing scrubs and a lab coat, kneeling in a hospital hallway while holding a closed fist in the air. “I’m an Asian-American doctor and today I #TakeTheKnee to fight white supremacy,” Gu tweeted.
This Vanderbilt surgical resident sued Trump and won.
Now he’s out of a job.
Based on reports in The Tennessean and MedPage Today.
Medical Center. Vanderbilt ended Gu’s residency, the five-year program required to become a surgeon. Vanderbilt’s decision was made after Dr. Gu made statements critical of racism at \Vanderbilt and supportive of Colin Kaepernick and sued Donald Trump after the President blocked Gu’s comments on Twitter.The young doctor was one of seven Twitter users who sued Trump in federal court claiming the president had violated First Amendment rights by blocking them from commenting on his tweets. The lawsuit, seen widely as a free speech debate for the social media age, ended with a ruling against Mr. Trump. Gu’s suit became controversial at Vanderbilt .
Even after Dr. Gu deleted the tweet at Vanderbilt’s request, at least two patients refused to let him treat them. The Tweet was not Gu’s only offence. Dr. Gu also spoke publicly about what he claims was a racially-motivated attack on hospital grounds during the first year of his residency. Gu alleges he was attacked by a white man who shouted racial slurs in the hospital parking garage. The man followed him into the hospital before police intervened, he said. Gu said both he and the man were arrested. Charges were later dropped against both of them.
“I don’t think Vanderbilt likes people to know that racism exists in these walls,” Gu said. “But we are living in an era now that is scary … especially in Nashville. Nashville is a little liberal, but it’s surrounded by very conservative areas, and that bleeds into the lives of minorities here.”
Gu has been controversial in Tennessee for another reason. In 2012 Eugene Gu started a biotech company devoted to growing organs from stem cells. Although Gu’s company, Ganogen, had ceased work when he started his residency in 2015, a conservative group made undercover videos intended to expose corruption and charges of murder against Planned Parenthood. Gu was subpoenaed as CEO of his company by the United States House Select Investigative Panel on Planned Parenthood following the Planned Parenthood 2015 undercover videos controversy. Not a good thing in Tennessee.
Vanderbilt said in an email statement Friday that the decision not to renew Gu’s contract was not a result of criticism of Trump, his lawsuit, or his public opposition to racism. The hospital said that all disciplinary actions against Gu relate to his work performance and professionalism. This seems surprising given Dr. Gu’s record. He is — was — a resident at Vanderbilt University’s highly selective surgical residency. Eugene Gu’s resume is striking: valedictorian in high school, undergraduate degree from Stanford, medical degree from Duke, surgical residency at Vanderbilt and starting his own stem cell therapy company in 2012.
Vanderbilt stated that the leave was based on Vanderbilt’s policies, including those concerning use of social media.