Just released by the White House:
Puerile, of course.
We’re actually going to have a showdown over this now?
TLDR of the president’s letter to Nancy Pelosi: He’s daring her to formally uninvite him from delivering the State of the Union Tuesday.
— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) January 23, 2019
If that is true… then she should formally uninvite.
This Trump letter isn’t “I’d like to deliver the speech in the House chamber”; it’s “I’m going to deliver the speech in the House chamber.”
— Aaron Blake (@AaronBlake) January 23, 2019
Right or wrong, that’s Pelosi’s prerogative. And no resolution has passed setting the date.
So the president is threatening to cause an international shitshow in the Capitol building to hold his SOTU speech so that he can show his people that he won’t ever give in to a woman?
— digby (@digby56) January 23, 2019
I hear on TV that this is a clever “reality show” gambit from a “master TV showman.”
Will he storm the capitol building? Will he shove Pelosi off the dais if she refuses to gavel in the session?
— digby (@digby56) January 23, 2019
Oooh. It’s so exciting.The whole country is on pins and needles.
Meanwhile, the government is shut down.
Pelosi can’t stop Trump from coming to the Capitol anyway on January 29.
There are restrictions on who can walk onto the House floor. The privilege is reserved for current and former members of Congress, along with congressional staffers with specific credentials allowing them access. The president is also permitted to enter the House chamber at any time.
But Pelosi can use House rules to silence Trump.
Whether Trump could just get up on the dais and start delivering his State of the Union address is another question. Nothing could physically stop Trump from speaking in the House chamber, but there is a strict set of rules governing what is allowed to take place on the floor and what would be subject to condemnation.
In order for someone to deliver formal remarks in the House of Representatives, the chamber must be “in session,” which is at the discretion of the speaker.
And Pelosi can make it difficult for C-SPAN to broadcast Trump’s floor speech.
Ordinarily, C-SPAN is the only entity allowed to record House floor proceedings. But C-SPANonly has permission to operate when the House is officially in session. If the House isn’t in session and Trump comes to the floor and begins speaking, there would be no way of broadcasting the address to a national audience. The chamber lights might not even be on for Trump to see his written speech.
Unless someone broke House rules. Someone could videotape Trump and carry it live on Facebook or Twitter. When Democrats, then in the minority, took over the House floor in a 24-hour “sit-in” in 2016 to protest gun violence, Democrats filmed their own floor speeches and C-SPAN chose to air that content. The same thing could happen in this scenario.
Then Pelosi would have to decide whether to move forward with a vote to formally rebuke of Trump.
Trump could of course deliver his speech elsewhere (like the Senate floor).
Yes, the president has House floor privileges. But there is no requirement he be recognized to speak. Or that the House be in session when he wishes to speak. pic.twitter.com/3xGo9s8Sef
— Mike DeBonis (@mikedebonis) January 23, 2019
I know it’s a concept you don’t respect, Mr. President, but no means no. https://t.co/8FYVSK8Fuq
— Matthew Miller (@matthewamiller) January 23, 2019
I know this is not at the top of the Trump Education Priority list, but at some point it would be great for him to learn about the semicolon. https://t.co/rHwQSIoftR
— Asha Rangappa (@AshaRangappa_) January 23, 2019
The most alarming thing in this letter has nothing to do with the Constitution or the separation of powers. It’s the run-on second sentence. (Followed closely by the shifting ways of rendering dates and the capitalization of Shutdown.) https://t.co/zc12hqkKqr
— Mike Madden (@MikeMadden) January 23, 2019
"Stay tuned," Speaker Nancy Pelosi said to repeated questions about whether she intends to allow Trump to deliver his State of the Union address Tuesday from the House chamber.
— Lindsey McPherson (@lindsemcpherson) January 23, 2019
BREAKING: @SpeakerPelosi to decline steps to permit a State of the Union Jan 29 pic.twitter.com/ZDbKGjduNT
— Kelly O'Donnell (@KellyO) January 23, 2019
Pres. Trump after Speaker Nancy Pelosi effectively cancels State of the Union address amid shutdown: "It really is a shame, what's happening with the Democrats. This will go on for a while. Ultimately, the American people will have their way because they want to see no crime." pic.twitter.com/qKcWXha6sp
— CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) January 23, 2019
If Trump wants people to see no crime, he should let federal agents get back to work with pay.