WASHINGTON — Sen. Mark Udall’s call for Republicans and Democrats to sit together during the president’s State of the Union address went viral here Thursday, with the White House calling the idea “interesting” and a handful of mostly Democratic senators and House members signing on.
One notable exception is Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain, who signed Udall’s letter after spending the week in his home state honoring the victims of a mass shooting Saturday outside a grocery store in Tucson.
Udall, D-Colo., said the shootings got him thinking about coming together and cooling the “rhetoric and vitriol.”
“It was a warning,” Udall said. “I place no blame on anybody. … I’m not counting transgressions, but I think it’s a warning to us and it’s an opportunity for us to turn this terrible, terrible event into something that is more uplifting.”
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada called Udall’s idea “thoughtful” Thursday and said it merits serious consideration.
“We need to look for more ways to be bipartisan,” Reid said. “After this tragedy, it’s important for our country see that we all stand together as Americans and this could be one way to demonstrate that.”
Republicans have been cooler to the idea. Several have called the suggestions a gimmick and a symbol that will largely be unimportant if members don’t also vow to work together when times get tough.
A spokesman for House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, told The Associated Press that House members may “sit where they choose,” echoing statements made Wednesday by a spokesman for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.
Udall said he will sit with Republicans, maybe even House Republicans, for the Jan. 25 address even if he is the only one who does it.
He compared the traditional seating arrangements — where Republicans sit on one side of the room and Dems on the other — to a football game.
“It’s a comfortable way to stay on the side of the field where your team is on,” he said. “Politics is like a form of football. Yes, there is an intention and a goal to win the game, but there is also a goal to play the game fairly.”
Allison Sherry: 202-662-8907 or asherry@denverpost.com
