On Tuesday, House Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) broke tradition when she refused to announce President Donald Trump properly before the State of the Union address.
Protocol, as decades of past SOTU addresses show, is for the House Speaker to announce the president by noting that it is their “high privilege and distinct honor” to do so:
“Members of Congress, I have the high privilege and distinct honor of presenting to you the President of the United States.”
Instead, Pelosi merely announced President Trump: “Members of Congress, the President of the United States.”
As recently as 2015, during then-President Barack Obama’s SOTU address, then-House Speaker John Boehner announced Mr. Obama: “Members of congress, I have the high privilege and the distinct honor to present to you, the President of the United States.”
Moreover, at the end of the event on Tuesday, Pelosi ripped up the copy of the president’s SOTU speech she was given, Fox News’ Bret Baier reported.
WATCH:
Imagine the outrage and meltdown if Nancy Pelosi was a Republican. pic.twitter.com/x0i8OAdwyk
— The Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) February 5, 2020
As noted by The Daily Wire on Tuesday, the SOTU address was boycotted by eight House Democrats. According to reports from The Hill and Axios, the following Democrats did not attend the address, apparently as a protest of Trump:
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY)
Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA)
Rep. Al Green (D-TX)
Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN)
Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR)
Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA)
Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-FL)
Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA)
“After much deliberation, I have decided that I will not use my presence at a state ceremony to normalize Trump’s lawless conduct & subversion of the Constitution,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) said Tuesday.
“None of this is normal, and I will not legitimize it. Consequently, I will not be attending the State of the Union,” the elected Democrat wrote.
“This is a deeply personal decision for each member to make, and a choice I did not take lightly. I will be hopping on Instagram Live later this evening to connect with my constituents and follow up with their questions about #SOTU,” AOC concluded.
Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) posted: “The State of the Union is hurting because of the occupant of the White House, who consistently demonstrates contempt for the American people, contempt for Congress & contempt for our constitution. I cannot in good conscience attend tonight’s sham.”
Additionally, as noted by The Daily Wire, far-left Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) skipped the address. The presidential hopeful, instead, campaigned in New Hampshire.
During the SOTU, President Trump awarded legendary conservative talk radio host Rush Limbaugh the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Mr. Limbaugh announced Monday that he is battling advanced lung cancer.
“I have to tell you something today that I wish I didn’t have to tell you,” Limbaugh told his listeners on Monday. “I have been diagnosed with advanced lung cancer. Diagnosis confirmed by two medical institutions back on January 20th.”
“I told the staff today that I have a deeply personal relationship with God that I do not proselytize about, but I do, and I have been working that relationship tremendously,” he added. “I am, at the moment, experiencing zero symptoms.”