SOTU Prom dates: Lowey and Granger
The top Republican and Democrat on the House Appropriations’ State and Foreign Operations subcommittee join the long list lawmakers who will sit next to each other at Tuesday’s State of the Union address as symbol of bipartisanship. Incoming chairwoman Kay Granger (R-TX) will sit next to former chairwoman Nita Lowey (D-NY) for the speech, Lowey’s ...
The top Republican and Democrat on the House Appropriations' State and Foreign Operations subcommittee join the long list lawmakers who will sit next to each other at Tuesday's State of the Union address as symbol of bipartisanship.
The top Republican and Democrat on the House Appropriations’ State and Foreign Operations subcommittee join the long list lawmakers who will sit next to each other at Tuesday’s State of the Union address as symbol of bipartisanship.
Incoming chairwoman Kay Granger (R-TX) will sit next to former chairwoman Nita Lowey (D-NY) for the speech, Lowey’s spokesperson Matthew Dennis told The Cable.
"Nita Lowey and Kay Granger have always worked across the aisle, and now they won’t be separated by one during the State of the Union," he said.
But don’t expect the State and foreign aid budget, which Granger and House Foreign Affairs Committee chairwoman Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) have pledged to cut, to be a big focus of President Obama’s remarks.
"Congresswoman Lowey anticipates a domestic focus to this year’s speech, but if President Obama has grand ideas for diplomacy and development, he’ll know exactly where to look," Dennis said.
Granger and Lowey become the latest in a long list of lawmakers who have agreed to be each other’s "dates" to Tuesday night’s event.
"I’m bringing the popcorn; he’s bringing a Coke with two straws," said Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) about his plan to sit next to Sen. Mark Kirk (R-IL).
UPDATE: Ros-Lehtinen will not be able to attend the speech due to the illness of her mother.
"I was greatly looking forward to sitting during the State of the Union address with members of our bipartisan Congressional women’s softball team, headed by Congresswomen Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Joanne Emerson," Ros-Lehtinen said. "However due to my mother’s failing health from Alzheimer’s complications, I will stay at her bedside at Miami’s Baptist Hospital."
Josh Rogin covers national security and foreign policy and writes the daily Web column The Cable. His column appears bi-weekly in the print edition of The Washington Post. He can be reached for comments or tips at josh.rogin@foreignpolicy.com.
Previously, Josh covered defense and foreign policy as a staff writer for Congressional Quarterly, writing extensively on Iraq, Afghanistan, Guantánamo Bay, U.S.-Asia relations, defense budgeting and appropriations, and the defense lobbying and contracting industries. Prior to that, he covered military modernization, cyber warfare, space, and missile defense for Federal Computer Week Magazine. He has also served as Pentagon Staff Reporter for the Asahi Shimbun, Japan's leading daily newspaper, in its Washington, D.C., bureau, where he reported on U.S.-Japan relations, Chinese military modernization, the North Korean nuclear crisis, and more.
A graduate of George Washington University's Elliott School of International Affairs, Josh lived in Yokohama, Japan, and studied at Tokyo's Sophia University. He speaks conversational Japanese and has reported from the region. He has also worked at the House International Relations Committee, the Embassy of Japan, and the Brookings Institution.
Josh's reporting has been featured on CNN, MSNBC, C-Span, CBS, ABC, NPR, WTOP, and several other outlets. He was a 2008-2009 National Press Foundation's Paul Miller Washington Reporting Fellow, 2009 military reporting fellow with the Knight Center for Specialized Journalism and the 2011 recipient of the InterAction Award for Excellence in International Reporting. He hails from Philadelphia and lives in Washington, D.C. Twitter: @joshrogin
More from Foreign Policy
The Scrambled Spectrum of U.S. Foreign-Policy Thinking
Presidents, officials, and candidates tend to fall into six camps that don’t follow party lines.
What Does Victory Look Like in Ukraine?
Ukrainians differ on what would keep their nation safe from Russia.
The Biden Administration Is Dangerously Downplaying the Global Terrorism Threat
Today, there are more terror groups in existence, in more countries around the world, and with more territory under their control than ever before.
Blue Hawk Down
Sen. Bob Menendez’s indictment will shape the future of Congress’s foreign policy.
Sign up for World Brief
FP’s flagship evening newsletter guiding you through the most important world stories of the day. Delivered weekdays.
By submitting your email, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use and to receive email correspondence from us. You may opt out at any time.