Donald Trump's Inauguration: List of Illinois Lawmakers Skipping, Attending the Event

At least five Illinois Democratic congressmen won't be attending Donald Trump's presidential inauguration Friday in Washington, D.C., part of a growing group of politicians and lawmakers from the state and around the country who will be skipping the event.

U.S. Rep. Janet Schakowsky (9th District) became the latest lawmaker from the state to say she wouldn't be going to the ceremony. In a statement released Wednesday, the Evanston representative explained that her absence would be "in protest of a President who used bigotry, fear, and lies to win an election that was tainted by foreign interference and voter suppression — and who intends to betray the interests of the ordinary working people who put him in office."

"My constituents and I are fired up in opposition to the Trump Agenda and are determined to not allow the Republicans to destroy the hard fought progress we’ve made," Schakowsky said in the statement.

Previously, Reps. Luis Gutierrez (4th District), Dan Lipinski (3rd District), Mike Quigley (5th District) and Bobby Rush (1st District) said they would be missing Trump's swearing-in Friday, Jan. 20. At the time, Gutierrez was the only one who stated he was doing so for political reasons.

On Jan. 10, Gutierrez spoke on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives to explain why he would be absent from the ceremony:

"The reason I am not going is that I cannot bring myself to justify morally or intellectually the immense power we are placing in that man’s hands.

"I could not look at my wife, my daughters or my grandson in the eye if I sat there and attended as if everything that candidate Donald Trump had said about The women, about The Latinos, or The Blacks, The Muslims or any of the other things he said in his speeches and Tweets — that any of that is OK or erased from my memory.

"We all heard the tape when Donald Trump was bragging – bragging – about grabbing women by their private parts without their consent.

"It is something I can never un-hear.

"Bragging to that guy on TV that he would grab women below the belt as a way of hitting on them.

"Sorry. That is never OK.

"It is never just locker room talk.

"It is offensive and, if he ever actually did it, it is criminal."

In a statement, Douglas Rivlin, the congressman's director of communication, said the reaction to the lawmaker's House speech last week has been supportive.

“We usually get a lot of haters calling and trolling the Congressman on Facebook and Twitter because he is Latino and has been outspoken on immigration, guns, Planned Parenthood and other issues, but the response has been overwhelmingly positive to his family’s decision to skip the inauguration," he said. "Congressman Gutiérrez apparently articulated what a lot of people are feeling with his comments that Trump’s rhetoric on women, people of color and people of different religions made it such that he did not want to attend the inauguration. So many people have called with their messages of support, especially women. Our phones are ringing off the hook.”

Gutierrez and Schakowsky plan to attend the Women's March on Saturday, Jan. 21, in Washington, D.C. A similar rally also will be held in Chicago that day.

WATCH Rep. Luis Gutierrez explain why he won't be attending Trump's inauguration:

Reasons besides disgust over Trump's past comments or fear over his potential policies are keeping the other Illinois congressmen from the inauguration. Rush is not going because his wife is in the hospital, according to a spokeswoman, and Lipinski spokesman Isaac Sancken said the congressman is not attending for "personal reasons."

"Unlike previous inaugurations, they’ve all taken place when congress is in session," Sancken told Patch. "Congress is off this week — it’s a district week. Congressman Lipinski is meeting with constituents. He has meetings set up for [Wednesday]. After that, he’s going to get away and spend time with his family.”

Quigley offered a similar explanation for his absence at the inauguration through a spokeswoman, who said the congressman "fully supports the peaceful transfer of power, but has chosen to spend the district workweek with those who have elected him," according to Crain's Chicago Business.

The spokeswoman added that Quigley, going forward, will work with Trump to "find common ground, but will also continue to hold the president-elect accountable in areas where he tries to roll back progress for hardworking Chicagoans," the report stated.

Rounding out the list of Illinois elected officials not attending Trump's inauguration are Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Gov. Bruce Rauner, who will be staying home to focus on the state's budget deadlock, according to the Chicago Tribune. Rep. Robin Kelly (D-2nd District) remains on the fence about attending the inauguration, Crain's reports.

Illinois Democrats who will be in D.C. on Friday include Reps. Cheri Bustos and Brad Schneider, and Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth, the report added.

On Thursday, Rep. Bill Foster (D-11th District) announced he would attend.

"After careful consideration, I have decided to attend the Inauguration of the 45th President of the United States to mark the peaceful transfer of power that has always defined the strength of our democracy and respect for the Office of the Presidency," said in a statement, but added he planned to attend the Women's March on Chicago on Saturday.

"I will proudly join thousands of people in Chicago for the Women's March to champion the civil rights, inclusion, and diversity that make America strong," Foster said. "I will respect the Office of the Presidency as a fundamental part of our democracy, but I will not tolerate bigotry, hatred, and a disrespect for civil discourse. I hope to work with an administration that respects the rights and dignity of all Americans."

Over the weekend, many Democratic members of congress backed out of going to the inauguration after Trump used his communication platform of choice, Twitter, to criticize U.S. Rep. John Lewis, a respected and admired Civil Rights-era activist who marched in Selma, Alabama, in 1965, after the Georgia congressman questioned the legitimacy of Trump's presidency in an interview:

Because of those postings, nearly 60 lawmakers as of Tuesday have said they will not be attending the inauguration in protest, according to the Washington Post.

Patch Editor Lorraine Swanson and Regional Manager Shannon Antinori contributed to this report.

UPDATED (10:40 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 19)

photo via Patch archive

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