Florida Democratic Rep. Frederica Wilson has joined two other black Democratic lawmakers in boycotting President Donald Trump’s State Of The Union address.
Wilson told The Tampa Bay Times in a statement Sunday that she will not attend Trump’s speech to Congress on Jan. 30., joining California Democratic Rep. Maxine Waters and Georgia Democratic Rep. John Lewis in the protest.
“For the first time since I began serving in the U.S. House of Representatives, I will not be attending the president’s State of the Union address,” Wilson said in a statement. “I have no doubt that instead of delivering a message of inclusivity and an agenda that benefits all Americans, President Trump’s address will be full of innuendo, empty promises, and lies.”
The announcement comes after Trump reportedly used the term “shithole” to describe Haiti and El Salvador during a bipartisan immigration sit-down at The White House Thursday. Although Trump has denied using the word, Wilson and other Democratic lawmakers have been quick to label the remark as “racist.”
The Florida Democrat said one of the reasons she would not be attending the address is because it would be an embarrassment to be seen with Trump.
“During his disappointing and destructive first year in office, Mr. Trump has demeaned the presidency at every opportunity and cast doubt on our nation’s standing as a global leader. The United States’ reputation is smoldering in the ashes of his recent racist and incendiary remarks about Haiti and African nations. Many of his proposed domestic policies are harmful to people of color, low-income communities, and the middle class. It would be an embarrassment to be seen with him at a forum that under any other president would be an honor to attend.”
Wilson has had her problems with Trump in the past. In October, she accused the president of making an insensitive phone call to the widow of Army Sgt. La David T. Johnson. (RELATED: The General Speaks: Kelly Urges Americans To Remember What Is ‘Sacred’)
Other Democratic lawmakers have said they will attend the address but many females plan on by wearing black to to protest against sexual harassment.
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