As Jan. 20 neared, no such movement formed this time. Some will sit out the ceremony today, but those choices came individually. Of the dozens who boycotted in 2017, 31 are still in Congress. POLITICO surveyed every one of them and their answers underscore a new reality: The resistance that defined the first Trump era has faded.
"There is a bit of — I don't want to say depression, but feeling kind of lowly — that our president is a convicted felon, an adjudicated sexual abuser, a liar," said Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-N.J.). "He's the epitome of, 'The rule of law didn't apply' and so we're grappling with that as well." She is among those that are skipping it again. Check out POLITICO's member-by-member breakdown of all their answers here. Twenty of the 31 are sitting it out again. Some of them, such as Reps. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) and Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), cited lingering anger over Jan. 6, 2021, or disdain for Trump himself. But others just pointed to scheduling conflicts — several were attending MLK Jr. Day events. Rep. Brendan Boyle (D-Pa.) said he hoped to go watch Notre Dame play in the college football national championship game. One member explicitly cautioned against reading too much into her decision to skip the event.
"I didn’t even go to Biden’s inauguration. It’s too cold and unpleasant," said Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.). "So maybe not, but it’s not making a statement." Because of frigid temperatures, the ceremony was moved into the Capitol Rotunda early Friday morning — which will mean dramatically fewer people attending, although members of Congress still score an invite. But before that relocation, at least seven of the 31 planned to attend: Reps. Darren Soto (D-Fla.), Jared Huffman (D-Calif.),
Katherine Clark (D-Mass.), Raul Ruiz (D-Calif.), Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.) and Alma Adams (D-N.C.). Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), who protested as a House member in 2017, will attend. Several of them made it clear that they viewed Trump's second election as different from his first. "Last time, it was a little iffy with the election win, with the Russian collusion," Soto said. "This time, he won narrowly, and so I’ll be attending."
It is worth noting that political calculations could be part of the equation. Soto and Ruiz both saw their districts become far more competitive at presidential level in 2024. Gallego now represents a swing state that Trump carried last year. Even some people who ultimately did end up boycotting were clearly grappling with the decision. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), who led an impeachment effort against Trump, was undecided until a few days before.
Others were visibly struggling with the decision. Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) said last week he kept going back and forth. “I keep flip-flopping,” he said. “Michelle Obama was the last to influence my thinking, so I’m not sure.” Happy Inauguration Day. Send any and all tips and feed to amutnick@politico.com and find me on X at @allymutnick. Days until the 2025 election: 288 Want to receive this newsletter every weekday? Subscribe to POLITICO Pro. You’ll also receive daily policy news and other intelligence you need to act on the day’s biggest stories.
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