LA Congresswoman Decides To Skip Trump Inauguration After Running Twitter Poll
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — A Los Angeles-area congresswoman says she's staying home from President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration after running an informal poll on Twitter.
Rep. Karen Bass (D-LA) ran the poll on Jan. 15 asking her constituents - despite any hard data on how many of her Twitter followers actually reside in her 37th District - whether she should attend the inauguration.
She mentioned that Trump insulted civil rights hero and fellow Congressman John Lewis "with a petty tweet" just days before the nation celebrated Martin Luther King's birthday.
After receiving more than 16,500 votes, Bass announced her decision Tuesday with a screenshot of the poll results: 84 percent "no", 16 percent "yes".
After receiving an overwhelming response on the twitter poll, I've decided not to attend the inauguration of President-elect Trump. pic.twitter.com/ig4kFn0GGH
— Congressmember Bass (@RepKarenBass) January 17, 2017
"After receiving an overwhelming response on the [T]witter poll, I've decided not to attend the inauguration of President-elect Trump," Bass wrote.
Bass is one of at least 15 California House Democrats - along with Sen. Dianne Feinstein and Rep. Xavier Becerra - who are skipping the ceremony. All 14 of the delegation's GOP members will be in attendance, according to the Los Angeles Times.
While many followers appeared to support her decision, some called out Bass for using such an informal method to make her decision.
Agree with not attending the inauguration but fact that you used a twitter poll to decide sums up everything that is wrong
— Kevin (@Kevmcg25) January 17, 2017
While I agree with her not attending, she can't be sure that only her constituents voted.
— Sunny #FEARTHEDEER (@SunnyDayComics) January 17, 2017
Would have preferred u'd made the decision based on own moral compass. We need #integrity from u. Poll not way 2 show it.
— Not now, I'm reading - Snitch tagging gets a block (@camillemha) January 17, 2017
Bass - who represents neighborhoods in South Los Angeles, Crenshaw, Baldwin Hills, Miracle Mile, and Pico-Robertson - previously stirred up controversy during the 2016 presidential campaign when she called for Trump to undergo a psychiatric evaluation and proposed a new hashtag -- "#DiagnoseTrump" -- to promote her efforts.