Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) is the first of many Democrats who will refuse to attend Trump’s State Of The Union.
In a statement provided to PoliticusUSA, Rep. Blumenauer said, “Rather than listening to yet another destructive and divisive speech by Trump, I will not attend this year’s annual address to Congress. Instead, like I did during Trump’s Inauguration, I will be working here at home listening to Oregonians about what they think about the State of the Union. Hearing from Oregonians and working together to protect our values and advance policies that actually strengthen our communities is a more productive use of my time.â€
Rep. Blumenauer was right. There aren’t many good reasons for Democrats to show up to Trump’s State Of The Union address. Unlike previous presidents, Trump won’t be telling the truth or laying out any policy specifics. If the President holds true to form, he’ll treat the SOTU as a campaign rally, where he tells America how great he is doing as president, while attacking the media and his enemies.
Trump isn’t governing. He isn’t going to give the country a vision or path to the future. The President is going to say a bunch of things that aren’t true while trying to hold it together for maybe 30 minutes at best.
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Don’t be surprised if dozens of Democrats don’t bother showing up. It would send a strong statement if Trump spoke to a half-empty room. Donald Trump has tried his best to divide the country, so it makes no sense for the nation to rally around his partisan and divisive State Of The Union.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
