President Trump just called Nancy Pelosi’s bluff regarding his planned State of the Union address. He, true to form, is not backing down.
Pelosi threatened to cancel the speech, to the shock of Washington who called it petty. Now Trump has responded and dared Pelosi to follow through with her threat.
He sent a letter asking for a walk-through for the coming speech which will force her hand – he wants her to take the extraordinary step of publicly canceling, something she really doesn’t want to do. Trump really knows how to use leverage for maximum effect, doesn’t he?
From Fox News: The White House is still planning to move ahead with next week’s scheduled State of the Union address, but the details remain up in the air after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi strongly urged the president to delay the speech or submit it in writing amid the government shutdown fight.
According to multiple sources, it remains unclear whether the address scheduled for Jan. 29 will in fact go forward, or what venue it would be in. The White House is even planning for the possibility of a speech outside of Washington.
“We are still in a holding pattern,” one senior source said.
But Fox News has learned that the White House sent a letter to the House Sergeant at Arms asking to schedule a walk-through for next week’s planned address. This comes after a previously scheduled walk-through last week was canceled at Pelosi’s request.
At the moment, President Trump intends to be at the Capitol next Tuesday to deliver his speech as scheduled, sources said. White House officials told Fox News they essentially are preparing for two tracks for next week’s speech. The preferred track is an address, as per custom, at the Capitol. The second track is a backup plan for a speech outside of Washington, D.C.
Ultimately, whether the speech is given on the House floor is up to Pelosi. In an appearance on Fox News on Tuesday, White House Deputy Press Secretary Hogan Gidley suggested the president could move the location of the speech should Pelosi block it in the House.
“There are many ways he can deliver the State of the Union address,” Gidley said on “America’s Newsroom.” “I’m not going to get ahead of anything he would announce.”
Gidley accused Pelosi of “trying to play politics with that venue.”
Trump can give the speech in the Senate, he can give it from the Oval Office, he can give it in a rally or her can give it in the House.
Point is it does not matter where he gives, but it does matter if Nancy Pelosi is on record disinviting the sitting President of the United States to give the SOTU.
It could be opening Pandora’s box and Pelosi needs to be very careful here with her next move.
SCOOP: @WhiteHouse has sent a letter to the Sergeant-At-Arms, asking to schedule a walk-through for the SOTU address. SAA cancelled a walk-through last week at the request of @SpeakerPelosi . @realDonaldTrump still plans to be at the Capitol on Jan 29 for the speech— John Roberts (@johnrobertsFox) January 22, 2019
