House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was feeling mighty full of herself this week when she shared a letter she’d written to President Donald Trump with other top Democrats. Reports have it that her audience broke out in cheers and applause when Pelosi revealed that she was disinviting Trump from delivering the State of the Union address, and we can only imagine that she reveled in the delight.
And then…reality hit.
While Pelosi and other congressional Democrats were sitting on a bus in front of the Capitol waiting to be shuttled to Andrews Air Force Base for their military ride to Europe and Afghanistan, Trump sent a sharp reminder to the House Speaker: Guess what, I’m still the president.
In a letter to Pelosi, Trump wrote: “Due to the Shutdown, I am sorry to inform you that your trip to Brussels, Egypt, and Afghanistan has been postponed. We will reschedule this seven-day excursion when the Shutdown is over.
“In light of the 800,000 great American workers not receiving pay, I am sure you would agree that postponing this public relations event is totally appropriate,” the president continued. “I also feel that, during this period, it would be better if you were in Washington negotiating with me and joining the Strong Border Security movement to end the Shutdown.
“Obviously, if you would like to make your journey by flying commercial, that would certainly be your prerogative,” the president concluded.
We couldn’t help but be reminded of the 2016 election, when Trump was asked if he would endorse Paul Ryan in his Wisconsin race. “I’m not quite there yet,” he said, serving cold a dish of revenge from earlier in the election, when Ryan said the same about endorsing Trump. Pelosi might have done well to remember that Trump identifies himself as a “counter-puncher,” and relishes the opportunity to exact a little bit of revenge against any slights against him.
As of Friday morning, Pelosi had not yet spoken out about her canceled trip, but Rep. Adam Schiff was fit to be tied.
“We’re not going to allow the president of the United States to tell the Congress it can’t fulfill its oversight responsibilities, it can’t ensure that our troops have what they need whether our government is open or closed,” whined Schiff. “We are a coequal branch of government.”
Yes, yes you are.
But you’re still grounded, buddy.
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