The top Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee is skipping President Trump’s speech to Congress on Tuesday night.
Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), who represents a large number of government employees and federal contractors, said he’ll boycott the address “in solidarity” with those workers who have been laid off as part of the federal firing blitz that’s been a leading feature of Trump’s return to office.
Protests at State of the Union speeches and other major presidential events have grown more common and severe in recent years. While Trump’s Tuesday address is not technically a State of the Union address, it follows essentially the same format. Connolly said he’s never missed a State of the Union address in his 16 years on Capitol Hill. “But we have never seen our democracy so tested,” he added. “These are not normal times,” Connolly said. “The challenges my constituents face demand more than sitting in a chamber I revere, listening as if the person addressing our country is not unleashing chaos and cruelty on their lives. “I cannot give audience to that.” The president is scheduled to speak before all members of Congress on Tuesday at 9 p.m. EST. Watch HERE:
