Congress’s top immigrant-rights advocate said Tuesday that he’ll skip next week’s inauguration, saying he can’t stomach seeing President-elect Donald Trump take the oath of office.
Rep. Luis V. Gutierrez, an Illinois Democrat who for years has led the push to legalize illegal immigrants, said Mr. Trump’s past remarks about racial and religious minorities — and particularly women — are ’something I can never un-hear.”
“Sorry. That is never OK,” Mr. Gutierrez said in a speech on the House floor.
Instead, he said, he’ll participate in a women’s march a day later.
He said he went to both inaugurations for former President George W. Bush, and it’s not partisanship that’s driving him away. Instead, he said, Mr. Trump is an exceptional case.
“The reason I am not going is that I cannot bring myself to justify morally or intellectually the immense power we are placing in that man’s hands,” he said.
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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