Luis Gutierrez, 64, walked out of Donald Trump’s State of the Union Address as Republican congressmen began chanting ‘U.S.A.’ A spokesperson said he did so to make it to a television appearance on Univision
Luis Gutierrez, a Democrat congressman in Illinois, walked out of Donald Trump’s State of the Union address and later issued a scathing response to in which he sarcastically said: ‘Whoever translated it for him from Russian did a good job.’
The congressman, who has represented the state’s 4th congressional district since 1993, walked out as Republican politicians began chanting ‘U.S.A.’ towards the end of the speech.
A spokesperson for Gutierrez, 64, said of his walk-out: ‘He was trying to make it to Univision. He watched the last 90 seconds on TV. It was not a protest or anything. He was just trying to get ahead of the crowd.’
Gutierrez later released a statement criticizing Trump’s address.
The Chicago native began: ‘Even though I disagreed with almost everything he said, for Trump, the speech was clear and well-delivered. Whoever translated it for him from Russian did a good job.
Gutierrez, who is of Puerto Rican descent, continued: ‘I am still hopeful, but I don’t see this Congress and this President coming to an agreement that prevents the deportation of the Dreamers.
The Illinois congressman later released a statement criticizing Trump’s speech. ‘I was hoping to get through my life without having to witness an outwardly, explicitly racist American President, but my luck ran out,’ he said
‘The White House agenda is to gut legal immigration in exchange for allowing some of the Dreamers to live here. For those of us who support legal immigration, and that’s most Democrats and many Republicans, it won’t fly.
‘And the Dreamers themselves have said they do not want legal status if it comes at the expense of others who will suffer more as part of the bargain. The speech did nothing to bring the pro- and anti-immigrant sides closer together.
‘I was hoping for some sort of apology on Puerto Rico, but I heard nothing.
‘Puerto Rico is a metaphor for how this President sees all Latinos and people of color: he does not see us as his equals and he does not see us as fellow human beings.
Gutierrez, pictured at a January 19 rally, said: ‘Even though I disagreed with almost everything he said, for Trump, the speech was clear and well-delivered. Whoever translated it for him from Russian did a good job’
President Donald Trump celebrated the ‘incredible progress’ and ‘extraordinary success’ that his administration has made in the year since he took office as he began his State of the Union address on Tuesday
‘If you look at how the President has treated Puerto Rico, you have to conclude that he just doesn’t care and probably thinks of Puerto Rico as just another s***hole country.
‘I was born in 1953 in the U.S. when separate but equal was the law of the land. I am proud of the progress the United States has made as a nation on issues of race, gender, sexual orientation, disabilities, and many other areas where we have advanced.
‘I was hoping to get through my life without having to witness an outwardly, explicitly racist American President, but my luck ran out.’
Gutierrez, who is outspoken in his championing of Progressive causes, announced late last year that he will not seek reelection.
Trump celebrated the ‘incredible progress’ and ‘extraordinary success’ that his administration has made in the year since he took office in a strident State of the Union address on Tuesday night.