President Donald Trump acknowledged that he skiped the memorial service for the late U.S. Rep. John Lewis (D-Georgia) – a figure who was iconic in the battle for civil rights – because Lewis did not attend Trump’s inauguration.
Lewis, who died at age 80 last month, after a battle with pancreatic cancer, which he announced on Dec. 29, was known on Capital Hill for his moral compass.
Instead of honoring the late Lewis, Trump held a long-term grudge and skipped Lewis’ Congressional farewell ceremony.
In an interview with Axios on Monday, when Trump was prompted on how he thought history would remember Lewis, he said, “I don’t know. I really don’t know. I don’t know. I don’t know John Lewis. He chose not to come to my inauguration.”
When asked whether Trump thought Lewis was impressive, he said, “I can’t say one way or the other … I find a lot of people impressive. I find many people not impressive. He didn’t come – he didn’t come to my inauguration. He didn’t come to my state of the union speeches. And that’s ok. That’s his right,” Trump said.
“He should’ve come. I think he made a big mistake,” Trump continued.
Although Trump skipped the ceremony, Vice President Mike Pence and presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden attended. At the memorial, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called Lewis, “[the] conscience of the Congress,” while Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell praised the Georgia Democrat as a model of courage.
