Bucking tradition, President Trump was not introduced by Pelosi at State of the Union
When President Donald Trump addressed congress and the nation Tuesday night, he did so without taking part in a long-held tradition.
Trump began his State of the Union address without being introduced by the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi.
When the president delivers the State of the Union, “it is customary for the Speaker of the House to introduce him,” according to Time magazine.
The president might have jumped the gun, according to a number of reports.
“Trump did not wait for the Speaker to introduce him to the Congress, which is the protocol ... Pelosi looked surprised that Trump began without waiting for her to introduce him,” CBS News White House correspondent Steven Portnoy tweeted, saying the lack of introduction was “very strange.”
Mark Knoller, another White House reporter, also noted the missed introduction on Twitter. Like Portnoy, he said Trump started before Pelosi could address the audience.
“(President) Trump jumped the gun, starting his Address before the formal introduction by Speaker Pelosi.”
Pelosi, a Democrat, did not introduce the Republican president, and he did not acknowledge the speaker by name, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Trump and Pelosi did shake hands before the president began his address, and the speaker was often seen clapping during the speech.
This story was originally published February 5, 2019 at 10:07 PM with the headline "Bucking tradition, President Trump was not introduced by Pelosi at State of the Union."
