Two big names are now on board with the push to have Democrats and Republicans sit together at the State of the Union, with Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) — who previously endorsed the idea last week — announcing that his date for the presidential prom will be none other than the very conservative Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK).
The idea was proposed by the think-tank Third Way, which is identified with moderate Democrats, and taken up by Sen. Mark Udall (D-CO).
“My colleague Senator Mark Udall called for Democrats and Republicans to sit together at the State of the Union,” Schumer said on Meet The Press. “I called up Tom after he did that, and he graciously agreed, we’re going to sit together Wednesday night [ed. note: The address is in face next Tuesday.] at the State of the Union , and we hope that many others will follow us. Now, that’s symbolic, but maybe it just sets a tone and everything gets a little bit more civil.”
The key moment occurs at the 2:40 mark below:
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Eric Kleefeld
Eric Kleefeld joined TPM as an intern for the final months of the 2006 midterm elections, and then kept showing up for work. His other interests include guitars, old comic books and the politics of various English-speaking countries.
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