It can be so embarrassing to be a Republican official today after all the gaffes made by U.S. President Donald Trump, including bullying a prime minister in Brussels. Suffering the consequences caused by the rude behavior of the President were Vice President Mike Pence and House Speaker Paul Ryan.
On Thursday, some South Orange Middle Schoo Students in New Jersey refused to join Ryan for a photo session. The eighth-graders were on a field trip to Washington. One of the students said he does not want to take a picture with someone he cannot associate with because of the Republican’s policies.
The student cited health care which Ryan endorsed. The 13-year-old student viewed Ryan as placing the GOP ahead of the nation.
Same political views
Another male student pointed out that taking the photo represents agreement with the political view of the congressman. Since he does not share the same view as the House Speaker, he opted not to join the photo opp, New York Daily News reported.
But the other students who have a different point of view had a photo taken with Ryan. Since the House Speaker is the third-most powerful man in the U.S., one student found it cool to be in the same picture even if the student also disagreed with Ryan’s policy.
Ryan, in turn, posted on Instagram on Friday his photo with some of the eighth-grade students who did not mind being in a photo opp with the House Speaker.
He used the hashtag Got that #FridayFeeling. According to the New York Post, about half of the students declined to have a photo with the congressman. Those who opted out waited across the street while the photo session was ongoing.
Optional photo opportunity
It was good that the school authorities did not force the students to take part in the photo opp.
The 13-year-old South Orange Middle School student explained that their school is quite liberal and in his grade, there are only three supporters of Trump.
After reports of the students’ refusal had come out, The Washington Post reported there was some backlash. The parents of the students who refused to join the speaker were criticized for indoctrinating their children with their political beliefs.
But a parent debunked the criticism and noted that teenagers do not listen to their parents.
On May 21, dozens of Notre Dame University graduates walked out on Vice President Mike Pence who was their graduation speaker. Before the former Indiana governor could deliver his commencement speech, a student coalition, the We StaND for, initiated the walk-out because of Pence’s stand on issues that they disagree with. The issues were LGBT rights, the travel ban, sanctuary cities, and the Syrian refugee resettlement.
