SUNBURY — Dozens of US Congressmen and woman across the country have announced they are boycotting the presidential inauguration Friday. State Representative Fred Keller (R-85th, Kreamer) says that’s their right to do so, but believes it takes away from the governmental process, “That is just a matter of participating in our democracy. We need to respect the process and be respectful of the people that are in the office.”
Keller says he has taken part in a number of events for both republican and democratic leaders, “We met President Bill Clinton in the mid-90’s when they had the Easter Egg Roll at the White House. It’s just a great experience for families or citizens to meet the president or elected officials and see how our government works.
He continued, “Whether or not you agree with the policies of one person or another, I think there is a point in time where you need to put that aside and say these people have a responsibility now to govern and we should wish them success.”
Keller plans to be in Washington Friday, “I’m taking my granddaughter down for the events, just to show her what happens and she’s excited about it. She brings books home from the library at school. She brought one home on the White House. She brought one home on Secretary Clinton. It’s just about learning about what the process is and what our democracy stands for.”
Keller was a call-in guest on WKOK’s On The Mark program on Thursday. You can listen to more of his comments online at www.wkok.com. (Ali Stevens)
