Last August Governor Northam invited President Trump to attend the celebration in Virginia on July 30th to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the founding of the General Assembly, the oldest representative government body in the world.
The invitation was sent on August 16, 2018. It came on official letterhead from the Governor’s office and was signed by the Governor along with the Speaker of the House of Delegates Kirk Cox and Senate Majority Leader Tommy Norment. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi was also invited. The invitation said:
“Your presence and remarks on this important anniversary would be most appropriate, by lending your voice and insights, you would continue a tradition that has brought numerous prior Presidents and world leaders, including Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, to Jamestown to reflect on the significance of the place and its major milestone.”
When it was learned yesterday that the President would come to Jamestown and address the General Assembly on July 30th the House and Senate Democrat leaders announced they would boycott the event. From the Richmond Times-Dispatch,
“The current president does not represent the values that we would celebrate at the 400th anniversary of the oldest democratic body in the western world,” Democratic General Assembly leaders said in a joint statement. “We offer just three words of advice to the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation: ‘Send Him Back.'”
Norment (Senate majority leader) said in a statement Saturday that the decision by House and Senate Democratic leaders to boycott the president’s appearance is “disappointing and embarrassing.”
“I consider it an honor – and a recognition of the historic importance of this commemoration – to have the President of the United States attend,” Norment said in a statement. “I would be similarly honored were Speaker of the House Pelosi able to join us. Sharing the views of the leader holding an elected office is not a prerequisite for showing respect for the office.”
This puts Democrat lawmakers in quite a bind. Their Governor invited the President and they’re going to boycott? Perhaps they should have waited a day or two before they jumped on the boycott bandwagon.
