Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley launched a petition Tuesday urging Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny and Irish-American members of Congress to boycott President Trump’s St. Patrick’s Day party next month.
The #NoShamrocks petition, which the Democrat said will be delivered to all Irish-American members of Congress and the Irish Embassy in Washington, gathered more than 1,500 signatures in under two hours Tuesday.
SIGN the petition demanding Congress & Irish Taoiseach skip @realDonaldTrump’s St. Patrick’s Day Party https://t.co/Qs3cKZlMML #NoShamrocks
— Martin O’Malley (@MartinOMalley) February 28, 2017
“No shamrocks please for the immigrant-hating Mr. Trump,” the petition states, The Hill first reported. “No tri-color flag pins for white supremacists with Irish surnames such as [White House chief strategist] Stephen Bannon.”
“The country we carry in our hearts is a more generous and compassionate nation,” Mr. O’Malley said in a video accompanying the petition. “Make our ancestors smile. Sign the petition.”
The shamrock ceremony is a longtime tradition at the White House during Irish-American Heritage Month, but Mr. Kenny has faced growing calls for a boycott to protest President Trump’s immigration policies.
Mr. Kenny has been critical of Mr. Trump’s travel ban on seven predominantly Muslim, terror-prone countries in the Middle East and Africa, but he has also said that he would attend the St. Patrick’s Day ceremony, The Washington Post reported.
Details of that ceremony have not yet been released.
• Jessica Chasmar can be reached at jchasmar@washingtontimes.com.
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