Why Congressman Don Beyer Is Surprised Rep. Gowdy Is Stepping Down
In a surprise announcement on his Twitter account, Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-SC) announced that he would not seek re-election this November. "It's remarkable," Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA) says. He notes that Gowdy likely would have survived the "wave" of Democrat wins in the 2018 midterms.
Congressman Beyer also shares his reaction to President Trump's State of the Union address. He says the president has proven on numerous occasions that you can't believe the words he reads off of a teleprompter.
Immigration was one of the focal points of President Trump's speech. Rep. Beyer invited Jessica Chilin-Hernandez as his guest. She came to the U.S. from El Salvador with temporary protected status in 2001, but her status was revoked just a few weeks ago by President Trump. Rep. Beyer says that decision was "arbitrary" and needs to be fixed.
President Joe Biden has met with new House Speaker Mike Johnson at the White House. Johnson was joined by Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries as they discussed Biden's request for nearly $106 billion for Israel, Ukraine and other national security needs.
The new leader of one of the chambers of Congress that will certify the winner of next year's presidential election helped spearhead the attempt to overturn the last one, raising alarms that Republicans could try to subvert the will of the voters if they remain in power despite safeguards enacted after the 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
