Jesse Marx

The Desert Sun

Along with dozens of his Democratic colleagues, Rep. Raul Ruiz will not attend the inauguration of America's 45th president on Friday. He told The Desert Sun that, while he respects the executive office, the man who is about to assume it has not shown such respect.

“A real president doesn't attack the press because they ask tough questions,” Ruiz said Monday. “A real president doesn't insult and bully celebrities or everyday Americans because they disagree with him. A real president doesn't use the office to make millions more for his own wealth or his family's wealth.”

Instead, Ruiz, a Democrat from La Quinta beginning his third term in the House, plans to attend a Saturday morning veterans expo in Banning.

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Rep. Mark Takano, a Democrat from Riverside, also announced this weekend that he will not be attending the inauguration in solidarity with Rep. John Lewis, a Democrat from Georgia who marched with Martin Luther King, Jr. Three days ago, Lewis told NBC News that he doesn't believe Trump is a “legitimate” commander in chief, because, “I think the Russians participated in helping this man get elected. And they helped destroy the candidacy of Hillary Clinton.”

Trump responded on Twitter by saying the congressman “should spend more time on fixing and helping his district, which is in horrible shape and falling apart (not to mention crime infested) rather than falsely complaining about the election results.” Lewis, Trump said, was all talk and no action. “Sad!”

Ruiz said he made his decision not to attend the inauguration “before the insult to one of the greatest civil rights icons,” but acknowledged that the criticism of Trump's comments — from Democrats and at least one Republican — made the decision easier.

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Don Genhart, a Republican activist with the Riverside County Republican Party central committee, called the decision of so many Democratic representatives to sit out the inauguration “discourteous and uncalled for.”

“It’s sad,” he added, “that they won’t honor this inauguration. The Republicans certainly honored Barack Obama when he was inaugurated.” They may have spent the next eight years criticizing many of Obama’s actions, but those criticisms were based on actual policy disputes.

Politifact, a nonpartisan fact-checking site, analyzed census information, as well as independent reports, and determined that Lewis’ district has slightly higher levels of poverty and unemployment than the national and state averages, “but not by much.” The district does, however, have a higher rate of educational attainment, and it is among the fastest growing in the country.

The site also noted that, while violent crime is high in Lewis’ area, incidents of violence crime have been trending down for a decade, “mirroring the overall national trend.”

Rancho Mirage City Councilman Dana Hobart didn't have an opinion on Ruiz's decision to skip the event.

“I don’t judge others with regard to how they deal with their politics,” Hobart said.

Reporter Sherry Barkas contributed to this report.

Jesse Marx covers politics. Reach him at jesse.marx@desertsun.com or @marxjesse on Twitter.