It’s an old tradition, the president’s State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress, but it’s one that at least a few Southern California lawmakers plan to skip this year.
Most of the nearly 30 House members who represent districts in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties said they will attend President Donald Trump‘s speech on Tuesday, Feb. 24.
They plan to bring with them family or local community members; others will be accompanied by guests who serve a pointed message to the Trump administration.
But at least three House Democrats who represent the four counties said they will skip the State of the Union: Reps. Laura Friedman of Glendale, Sydney Kamlager-Dove of Los Angeles and Dave Min of Irvine. U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff, also a Democrat, is opting to skip the State of the Union as well.
Kamlager-Dove is scheduled to speak at what’s been dubbed the “People’s State of the Union,” a rally on the National Mall organized by MoveOn, a national progressive group, that will take place at the same time as Trump’s address. She said it will cover “everything Donald Trump won’t talk about,” from the high costs of living and health care to “upholding democracy and our Constitution.”
“I cannot sit through Trump making a mockery of the sacred constitutional duty of the State of the Union address while there is a five-alarm fire in our country,” Kamlager-Dove said.
“The American people who have been in the streets protesting this lawless, corrupt administration will be on the National Mall — and I’m going to be listening to them, not Trump,” she said.
Still, Kamlager-Dove said she intends to send a guest in her place to the State of the Union: Jena-Lisa Jones, a survivor of Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse who has advocated for the full release of the Epstein files.
But Rep. Lou Correa has a different outlook.
It’s important for the Santa Ana Democrat — who said he doesn’t believe he’s missed a State of the Union since he joined Congress in 2017 — to attend because of his largely immigrant constituency.
Correa is continuing with his tradition of bringing a “Dreamer” (a term referring to someone who entered the U.S. as a child without legal status) as his guest to the State of the Union.
This year, he’s bringing with him Oliver Lopez, a mathematics professor who teaches at Chapman University. Lopez was a recipient of the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which allowed young undocumented people to remain in the country, Correa said. Other “Dreamers” who did not have legal status turned down Correa’s invite this year, he said.
“The best way to show people who these immigrants are is to bring one, to show them this is an immigrant, they are not criminals, but they are hardworking individuals,” said Correa.
“This is an excellent opportunity to showcase who my constituents are,” he added.
It’s become tradition — one almost as storied as the address itself — for lawmakers to bring guests who reflect the political climate or are impacted by current events.
Like Correa, several other Southern California lawmakers are bringing immigrants and others who are impacted by the Trump administration’s hardline immigration enforcement and deportation campaign over the past year.
Rep. Nanette Barragán, D-San Pedro, for example, is bringing with her Minnesota resident Gerardo Orozco Guzman, whose father, a workers’ rights organizer, was arrested during recent federal immigration enforcement actions.
And Sylvia Fajardo, executive director and principal of Pacoima Charter Elementary School and a U.S. Marine Corps veteran who immigrated to the U.S. from Chihuahua, Mexico, at 13, later becoming a citizen, will accompany Rep. Luz Rivas, D-Pacoima.
Meanwhile, Republican Reps. Ken Calvert and Young Kim — who are locked in a tight battle for California’s 40th Congressional District this year after redistricting pitted them against one another — are both bringing local community leaders to the State of the Union. Riverside County Auditor-Controller Ben Benoit will attend with Calvert; Orange County Business Council CEO Jeff Ball is Kim’s guest.
Rep. Jay Obernolte, R-Hesperia, is bringing his wife, Heather.
Another State of the Union tradition is for the party opposite of the president’s to give a response to the address. This year, that’s Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger.
But Sen. Alex Padilla, the first Latino elected to represent California in the U.S. Senate, has also been tapped to deliver the Spanish-language response for the Democrats.
“Americans demand and deserve accountability, stability and a government that works for them. That’s what I’ll be discussing on Tuesday,” said Padilla.
Meanwhile, California’s other U.S. senator has opted to skip Trump’s speech and will instead attend the “People’s State of the Union” outside of the Capitol.
“This is not business as usual,” said Schiff. “I will not give him (Trump) the audience he craves for the lies that he tells.”
The State of the Union is scheduled to be delivered by Trump on Tuesday at 6 p.m. PDT from the U.S. Capitol and will be broadcast on major television networks, cable news channels and streaming platforms.
See the chart below to find how the more than two dozen lawmakers who represent Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties plan to participate. And stay tuned; some lawmakers have not yet announced their State of the Union plans, and we’ll update the chart below once they do.