Schakowsky to Boycott Joint Address
WASHINGTON - Today, Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (IL-09) released the following statement on her decision to boycott President Donald Trump’s joint address to Congress:
“We are living in unprecedented times. We have a President of the United States who thinks he has unilateral power and is breaking our laws and violating our constitution day in and day out. This is not business as usual and I refuse to normalize his egregious language and behavior.
“In the United States of America, we stand for freedom, democracy, and the rule of law, but President Donald Trump has shown us time and time again that he stands for only one thing: himself. Let me remind you, in his first term as President, he tried to blackmail Ukrainian President Zelensky into helping him in the 2020 election. When he lost that election, he ordered a violent mob to attack the U.S. Capitol in a disgraceful attempt to stay in power. And in the last three weeks, we saw the Trump-Musk crime family vote with Russia and North Korea against a UN Resolution supporting Ukraine, Trump berate Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office, and Trump and his cronies spread Kremlin lies about the war. Supporting President Zelenskyy and the Ukrainian people is not just about their fight for sovereignty, but part of a broader fight for freedom and democracy in Europe and around the world. Trump is making the world less safe, and Putin and China are cheering him on.
“Not only will tonight’s speech be a MAGA love fest, it will also be a series of lies to the American people. President Donald Trump promised to lower the high cost of living in the United States, and his words and actions have instead caused even higher prices, job loss, and economic decline. The chaos, confusion, and fear Trump has unleashed during his first month in office has not improved the quality of life of the American people. But billionaires? They are getting more tax cuts and less regulation. Trump and his unelected sidekick Elon Musk would rather gut lifesaving programs and agencies than ask the rich to pay their fair share.
“I will continue to take every opportunity I can to speak out against this Administration's efforts to dismantle our democracy, end Medicaid as we know it, get rid of Social Security or Medicare, undermine veterans benefits or nutritional assistance to children and families, and so much more. I have heard from thousands of constituents who want me to resist. That is why I will not attend tonight's joint address.”
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