One of the highest elected officials in one of Georgia’s most diverse counties waded into controversial territory over the weekend when he wrote a Facebook post calling U.S. Rep. John Lewis – a Civil Rights legend already locked in a war of words with president-elect Donald Trump – a “racist pig.” 
 
 The reaction to Gwinnett County Commissioner Tommy Hunter, a Republican, taking on Lewis a few days before the holiday honoring the life of counterpart Martin Luther King Jr. was varied – but swift. 
 
 Many took to the comments section of Hunter’s Facebook posts to support him. Others did quite the opposite. 
 
 “Hunter is a disgrace to Gwinnett County in particular and Georgia in general, and he should apologize for those comments,” Gwinnett Democratic Party Chairman Gabe Okoye told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. 
 
 He later called for Hunter to resign. 
 
 Hunter, who was first elected to Gwinnett’s Board of Commissioners in 2012 and narrowly won re-election in November, made the Facebook post in question on Saturday afternoon. It came amid a well-publicized feud between Lewis and Trump, which started when Lewis told NBC’s “Meet the Press” that he didn’t view Trump as a “legitimate president.” 
 
 Trump then responded on Twitter, calling Lewis “all talk” and proclaiming his Congressional district — which includes most of the city of Atlanta — to be “in terrible shape and falling apart.” 
 
 In addition to calling Lewis “a racist pig,” the subsequent Facebook post from Hunter – whose Gwinnett district lies many miles east of Lewis’ congressional one – referred to “Demonrats” as “a bunch of idiots.” 
 
 A recent Facebook post from Gwinnett County Commissioner Tommy Hunter. (Facebook screenshot) 
 
 On Sunday afternoon, Hunter addressed Lewis on Facebook a second time, calling his election wins “all illegitimate.” 
 
 A recent Facebook post from Gwinnett County Commissioner Tommy Hunter. 
 
 Hunter later posted an image that included this phrase: “If you’re easily offended and looking for a ‘safe place’ my page ain’t it.. Move along snowflake.” 
 
 Sometime shortly before 11 a.m. Monday, however, the “racist pig” post was no longer on Hunter’s timeline. The page’s privacy settings also appeared to be changed, but the other posts mentioned above were still visible to “friends” and “followers” — along with additional posts mocking U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson, asking if there were “any white guys" on the University of Alabama’s football team and criticizing Gov. Nathan Deal’s decision to declare a state of emergency ahead of last weekend’s ultimately uneventful winter storm. 
 
 In November, he used the word “libtard” in a comment on one of his own Facebook posts. 
 
 The privacy changes on Hunter’s Facebook page were likely in response to an influx of nasty comments, many of which called the commissioner disparaging names or urged him to “stay classy.” 
 
 Hunter is the vice president of a local environmental testing firm and, prior to his time on the Board of Commissioners, worked in the county’s department of public utilities and served on its water and sewage authority (2005-09) and its planning commission (2011-12). Controversial or contentious votes are generally few and far between for Gwinnett’s Board of Commissioners, but Hunter represents himself as a staunch conservative. 
 
 He represents District 3, which covers a wide (and diverse) swath of southern and eastern Gwinnett, including parts of Snellville, Loganville, Grayson and Dacula. 
 
 Though much of suburban Gwinnett remains a Republican stronghold, Hillary Clinton won the county in November’s presidential election. It was the first time a Democrat took Gwinnett since Jimmy Carter in 1976. 
 
 Gwinnett is the second-most populous county in Georgia and is also a majority-minority county, meaning non-white residents account for more than half of its population. 
 
 Hunter’s fellow commissioners, all Republicans, did not immediately respond to requests for comment Monday. Nor did several other local, state and federal Republican party members with Gwinnett ties. 
 
 Some local Democrats were happy to weigh in, however. 
 
 Georgia State Rep. Dar’shun Kendrick, whose District 93 touches part of Hunter’s Gwinnett territory, shared her thoughts on Twitter, saying she was “ashamed” of him. 
 
 I'm ashamed he represents the GWINNETT portion of my district. https://t.co/NNfAY1FM3Z — Dar'shun Kendrick (@DarshunKendrick) January 16, 2017 
 
 For his part, Hunter later told The AJC that his “racist pig” comment was “probably an overreaction out of aggravation” — but he didn’t back down from the rest of his message. 
 
 In a lengthy message sent to a reporter, he defended Trump, saying the president-elect isn’t racist and downplaying reports of Russian hacking possibly influencing the election. 
 
 “While I am grateful for what the Congressman did in Selma and other times during the civil rights movement, you get respect by showing respect,” Hunter wrote. “He is using his fame as a way to continually divide the races and in this case standing on the very much unsubstantiated claim that the guy I voted for [Trump] is racist and only won because of Russians hacking the election—which, of course, we all know didn't occur.” 
 
 “So, true to exactly what the political pundits said would happen, he makes the claim that Trump, and all of us that voted for him, are illegitimate,” Hunter’s message continued. “Therefore I claim [Lewis] is illegitimate and make just as many unsubstantiated claims as [Trump] does. After all, in today's world, it's not about the evidence, but the seriousness of the charges.” 
 
 Shortly after sending that message, Hunter took to Facebook again — this time to wish his followers a “Happy MLK Day.” 
 
 A recent Facebook post from Gwinnett County Commissioner Tommy Hunter. 
 
 Gwinnett County’s annual parade celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. was held Monday morning in Lawrenceville. Donna McLeod, a Democrat who narrowly lost her bid last year for Georgia House District 105, which is partially in Hunter’s district, was there. 
 
 She said she wasn’t surprised by Hunter’s comments. 
 
 “This is the kind of campaign that the president-elect ran,” McLeod said. 
 
 Susan Clymer, another member of the Gwinnett County Democratic Party, said she thinks Lewis represents everything that King would have – fighting injustice and inequality. 
 
 “This Tommy Hunter is painting a horrible picture of Gwinnett County,” Clymer said. “He’s reflecting poorly on all of us, black, white or whatever.” 
 
 Not all of the feedback on Hunter’s comments was negative, though. On Monday afternoon, a woman who described herself as a personal friend of Hunter’s posted on his Facebook page. 
 
 “He is a fantastic man with an exceptional heart, and that’s all that matters,” she wrote. “So what if he openly put his view on [Facebook]. We ALL do a little too much of that. So if expressing yourself on [Facebook] is now wrong we all need to get off.” 
 
 Hunter and the rest of Gwinnett’s Board of Commissioners are scheduled to have their next bi-monthly meeting on Tuesday. 
 
 —Staff writer Lauren Foreman contributed to this article. Please return to AJC.com for updates. ||||| At a Dr. Martin Luther King Day Jr. breakfast in his honor, civil rights icon and recent target of President-elect Donald Trump's ire — Georgia Democrat Rep. John Lewis — eschewed his prepared remarks and spoke candidly about his remarkable personal journey. He described his impoverished childhood in Alabama and his career as an activist, which eventually sparked a long political career. 
 
 Lewis delivered the address to a group of young African-American men as part of the 5000 Role Models' of Excellence Project's annual scholarship breakfast in Miami on Monday. His comments came amid a firestorm generated by his recent assertion on NBC's "Meet the Press" that Trump is not a "legitimate" president-elect. The president-elect quickly took to Twitter to deem the lawmaker as "all talk" and call his congressional district "crime infested." 
 
 Related: Rep. Lewis: I Would Not Invite Trump to Selma 
 
 On Monday, Lewis chose not to rehash the controversy or engage Trump, instead focusing on his political evolution and the cause of his life — expanding the right to vote to as many eligible people as possible. 
 
 "The vote is precious is almost sacred it is the most powerful not violent instrument or tool that we have in a democratic society and we must use it," Lewis said Monday. 
 
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 The Democrat also reiterated the virtues of non-violence, which he championed as a young activist alongside Dr. Martin Luther King at the height of the Civil Rights Movement. 
 
 "The way of love is a better way, the way of peace is a better way," Lewis said. 
 
 In the speech, Lewis was also defiant about the need to stand up for your principles regardless of the risks. 
 
 "Never give up, never give in. Stand up, speak up. When you see something that is not right, not fair, not just, you have a moral obligation to do something, to say something and not be quiet," Lewis said, his voice rising with emotion. "The scars and stains of racism are deeply embedded in American society." 
 
 He went on to tell the audience at the scholarship breakfast that they are "more than lucky" to live in a world shaped by King's sacrifices. 
 
 From left center, John Lewis (holding bottle), Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Ralph Abernathy, march for civil rights from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, March 19, 1965. Others unidentified. AP 
 
 "If it hadn’t been for Martin Luther King, Jr. I wouldn’t be a member of the House of Representatives since 1987," said Lewis. "He freed us he helped liberate us to make our nation a better place, to make our world a better place." 
 
 Lewis, who King nicknamed "the boy from Troy" because of his courageous efforts to integrate what would eventually become Troy University in Alabama, is the lone surviving keynote speaker from the historic 1963 March on Washington. He is one of the only figures involved whose speech was censored by the organizers because it was deemed too politically incendiary. 
 
 Related: Trump is Not a Legitimate President: Civil Rights Icon Rep. John Lewis 
 
 And while those efforts helped turn Lewis into a hero for many Americans (including Republican Sen. Marco Rubio, who described the Congressman "as the most extraordinary figures in America, a true American hero" at Monday's event), it also left him with a fractured skull, which he suffered at the end of billy club wielded by police on the Edmund Pettis Bridge in Selma during a protest gone awry in 1965. 
 
 Today, Lewis looks back on his acts of civil disobedience as an effort to cause "good trouble" for a noble cause. And he hasn't slowed down, despite the fact that he will turn 77 this year. 
 
 I'm on the House floor with @repjohnlewis & Dems staging a sit-in to demand action on commonsense gun legislation pic.twitter.com/byIivby5gG — Rep. John Yarmuth (@RepJohnYarmuth) June 22, 2016 
 
 In just the past year, he's drawn criticism (and praise) for leading a late-night sit-in on Capital Hill to protest inaction on gun control legislation and for testifying against Trump's pick for attorney general, Sen. Jeff Sessions. 
 
 He concluded Monday's event by making the case for being ambitious about education and participation in the democratic process, telling the young men: "Never give up your dreams ... just go for it." ||||| Image copyright AFP Image caption Donald Trump was widely criticised for his attack on civil rights hero John Lewis 
 
 The number of Democratic members of Congress saying they will boycott Donald Trump's inauguration on Friday has increased to 26. 
 
 Many have cited as a reason the president-elect's recent attack on civil rights icon and fellow congressman John Lewis. 
 
 Mr Trump lashed out at Mr Lewis on Twitter on Friday after Mr Lewis said he was not a "legitimate president". 
 
 He said that Mr Lewis was: "All talk, talk, talk - no action or results." 
 
 Mr Lewis was a prominent member of America's civil rights movement and is a hero to many Americans. He was among those beaten by police during the infamous Selma-Montgomery voting rights march of 1965. 
 
 As Americans celebrate Martin Luther King Day, the children of the slain civil rights leader - a contemporary of Mr Lewis - have spoken out about the spat. 
 
 Martin Luther King III played down the row following a meeting with Mr Trump in New York that he described as "very constructive". 
 
 He said that in the heat of the moment "a lot of things get said on both sides". 
 
 But his sister Bernice King told a church audience in Atlanta that "God can triumph over Trump". 
 
 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption John Lewis tells Americans to continue to speak out against hate in MLK day address. 
 
 Mr Lewis joined the House of Representatives in 1987 and has served Georgia's fifth congressional district, which Mr Trump went on to call "crime-infested", ever since. 
 
 The president-elect's insults, made just days ahead of Martin Luther King Day, were the final straw for a number of Democrats, who will break with tradition by missing the inauguration ceremony on Friday. 
 
 "When you insult Rep John Lewis, you insult America," said Yvette Clarke, one of five representatives for New York who will boycott the event. There are 535 members of Congress, across both houses. 
 
 More on this story 
 
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 Inauguration blues: Why pop stars won't play for Trump 
 
 Anthony Zurcher: Ethics concerns swirl around Trump team 
 
 California representative Ted Lieu said: "For me, the personal decision not to attend Inauguration is quite simple: Do I stand with Donald Trump, or do I stand with John Lewis? I am standing with John Lewis." 
 
 Illinois representative Luis Gutierrez was the first member of Congress to say he would boycott the inauguration - announcing his decision in December. 
 
 "I could not look my wife, my daughters, or my grandson in the eye if I sat there and attended, as if everything that the candidate said about the women, the Latinos, the blacks, the Muslims, or any of those other things he said in those speeches and tweets, and that all of that is OK or erased from our collective memory," Mr Gutierrez told the House. 
 
 He has said he will attend the alternative Women's March on Washington the following day. 
 
 Image copyright AP Image caption Representative Katherine Clark (centre) is among those who will boycott the ceremony 
 
 Mr Lewis's announcement of his own boycott in an interview with NBC News, in which he said that Mr Trump was an illegitimate president, prompted the outburst from the president-elect. 
 
 Mr Trump's inauguration will be the second not attended by Mr Lewis in his 30 years in Congress. 
 
 The Georgia congressman cited alleged Russian interference in the election among his reasons for regarding Mr Trump as illegitimate. 
 
 He also did not attend George W Bush's inauguration in 2001. 
 
 "You cannot be at home with something that you feel that is wrong," he told NBC News. 
 
 Sales of Mr Lewis's memoir soared to the top of Amazon's US best-seller list following Mr Trump's attack, eventually selling out completely. 
 
 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Democrat lawmaker, Mark DeSaulnier, tells the BBC why he is boycotting Trump's inauguration 
 
 Mr Lewis led a sit-in protest at the House of Representatives in July to demand a vote on gun control legislation, in the wake of the deadly Orlando shooting. 
 
 Republicans adjourned the House early to try to quash the sit-in, switching off the TV cameras, but the C-Span network picked up live streams from some Democrats' phones. 
 
 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption The moment congressman John Lewis asked Democrats to take action 
 
 Katherine Clark, a representative for Massachusetts, was among the first to join Mr Lewis for the gun control protest. Ms Clark said last week she would skip Mr Trump's inauguration. 
 
 "Families in my district are fearful that the anti-woman, anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim and divisive promises that drove the Trump campaign will become the policies affecting the health and safety of every American," she said in a statement. 
 
 "I do not feel that I can contribute to the normalisation of the president-elect's divisive rhetoric by participating in the inauguration." 
 
 Mr Trump has struggled to book any established musicians to perform at his ceremony, despite his team appearing to have cast a wide net. 
 
 The event will feature Jackie Evancho, a 16-year-old America's Got Talent contestant, alongside military bands and the Radio City Rockettes, although some members of the Rockettes troupe have publicly refused to take part. 
 
 Country music stars including Toby Keith will play a concert on the eve of the inauguration. 
 
 Update 23 January 2017: This story has been updated following confirmation from John Lewis's office that he also missed Mr Bush's inauguration ceremony in 2001. ||||| Donald Trump lashed out at Rep. John Lewis on Saturday after the civil rights icon said he doesn't view Trump as a "legitimate president” — and the confrontation threatened to trigger a broader boycott of Trump’s inauguration by Democratic lawmakers already on the fence about attending. 
 
 Trump showed yet again that no one who crosses him — no matter how revered or respected, as Lewis is among both parties in Congress — will necessarily be spared his ire. Lewis was one of the top organizers of the 1963 March on Washington, and his skull was fractured by law enforcement authorities on "Bloody Sunday," the civil rights protest in Selma, Alabama, two years later. 
 
 Story Continued Below 
 
 "Congressman John Lewis 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. All talk, talk, talk — no action or results. Sad!" Trump wrote in two tweets Saturday morning. 
 
 The tweets, two days before the federal holiday honoring Martin Luther King, came after Lewis questioned Trump's victory in the presidential race in a pre-taped "Meet the Press" interview that aired Friday on NBC. 
 
 “I think the Russians participated in helping this man get elected, and they helped destroy the candidacy of Hillary Clinton,” Lewis told host Chuck Todd. Lewis said he does not view the "president-elect as a legitimate president” and won't attend his inauguration. 
 
 The 76-year-old lawmaker also testified against Trump's pick for attorney general, Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), who has faced long-running accusations of racism that he denies. 
 
 The back-and-forth between Trump and Lewis is the latest sign of partisan upheaval since Trump's victory. Some of the most heated criticism of the president-elect has come from African-American lawmakers. 
 
 Lewis joined a growing group of House Democrats who have declared they’ll be skipping the inauguration rather than sitting by as President Barack Obama transfers power to Trump. Eighteen lawmakers so far have said they will not attend. 
 
 "I stand with @repjohnlewis and I will not be attending the inauguration," Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.) tweeted on Saturday morning. The hashtag #StandWithJohnLewis cropped up elsewhere on Twitter. 
 
 Lewis’ office did not immediately respond to a request for comment, nor did Trump's transition team. 
 
 But a source involved in the transition said "no one around Trump would suggest it's a good idea to attack John Lewis on Twitter." 
 
 Trump is particularly aggrieved by any comment that questions the legitimacy of his election, the source said, who added that there often is not a larger strategy at work. He is "not going to change. And when you attack him he's going to hit back, whatever anyone thinks." 
 
 Trump’s attack follows the formula of his previous response to slights on the campaign trail, including questioning Sen. John McCain’s war record. The president-elect even went after the pope once. 
 
 Rep. John Lewis questioned Trump's victory in the presidential race in a pre-taped "Meet the Press" interview that aired Friday on NBC. | AP Photo 
 
 His target this time provoked a sharp response from Democrats as well as one Republican senator. 
 
 Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.), a fervent Trump critic throughout the campaign, retweeted Trump, adding: "John Lewis and his 'talk' have changed the world." Sasse on Friday had pleaded with Lewis to attend the inauguration. “To John Lewis, one of my heroes: Please come to the Inauguration. It isn't about a man. It is a celebration of peaceful transfer of power,” Sasse tweeted. 
 
 Democrats were more unsparing. 
 
 Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, said Trump's attack on Lewis "puts him in a very grave hole," and members are trying to decide what's next and whether it makes sense to attend the inauguration. 
 
 "You can guarantee this will cause people to organize with even greater intensity," he said. "This will make it even more likely that additional members skip the inauguration." 
 
 Jeffries said to expect Democrats to keep up the legitimacy attack on Trump and that members of the Congressional Black Caucus are likely to speak in the next 24 hours. "Trump won this election because of his help from Russia," he said. 
 
 House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) tweeted that "many have tried to silence @repjohnlewis over the years. All have failed." 
 
 Mike DuHaime, Chris Christie's top strategist who is close to many in Trump's orbit, said that while Lewis' moral status doesn't "make him immune from criticism or disagreement in the political arena, he has earned tremendous deference and respect. While Rep. Lewis's comments questioning the legitimacy of the election are wrong, any protracted disagreement with him, especially when it sounds personal, is counterproductive at a time when we should be trying our best to come together." 
 
 Ahead of #MLKday2017, let us remember that many have tried to silence @repjohnlewis over the years. All have failed. — Nancy Pelosi (@NancyPelosi) January 14, 2017 
 
 Despite the backlash, Trump reiterated his position in another tweet Saturday night. "Congressman John Lewis should finally focus on the burning and crime infested inner-cities of the U.S. I can use all the help I can get!" he wrote. 
 
 While Lewis's district includes some poorer stretches of Atlanta and lags the national average on some key indicators, it is not a leader of poverty-ridden, crime-infested areas Trump that made it out to be and has a number of wealthy suburbs. 
 
 Lewis and the Democratic Party on Saturday sent out a fundraising email citing Trump's tweets. 
 
 Douglas Brinkley, a presidential historian at Rice University who met recently with Trump, said the president-elect is entering the White House with less goodwill than past presidents, according to many polls. 
 
 Brinkley said "the constant fights and controversies" is likely to shrink his political capital and that Trump needed to try to strike a more balanced tone. 
 
 "He's got a very divided country and hasn't been working particularly hard at healing that gaping wound," Brinkley said. 
 
 But whether the attack on Lewis damages Trump is unclear. Ari Fleischer, the former press secretary to President George. W. Bush, said Trump made many comments on the campaign trail that were thought to be the end of him. 
 
 "Politicians learn to stop saying anything controversial because their threshold of pain is low," Fleischer said. "Trump can be boorish, he can be offensive, he can be highly controversial, but he lets it rip, and people see him as not another politician who parses his lips like politicians are supposed to." ||||| Donald Trump met with Martin Luther King III on Monday, a holiday commemorating the life of King's father, which this year was marked by Trump’s quarrel with Rep. John Lewis, a hero of the civil rights struggle. 
 
 King, the oldest surviving child of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., described the meeting at Trump Tower as constructive and said it had centered on efforts to improve the voting system. 
 
 Asked by reporters about Trump’s characterization Saturday of Lewis as “all talk … no action,” King said he “absolutely” disagreed. 
 
 “I would say John Lewis has demonstrated that he is action,” King said. 
 
 But, he added, “Things get said on both sides in the heat of emotion. And at some point in this nation, we’ve got to move forward.” 
 
 The conflict between the president-elect and Lewis began Friday when NBC’s “Meet the Press” released video of Lewis saying he did not consider Trump a legitimate president. 
 
 On Saturday, Trump responded via Twitter, criticizing Lewis and referring to his Atlanta-area congressional district as downtrodden and crime-ridden. Actually, it includes many of the city's high-end areas. 
 
 King said that Trump told him that he intended to represent all Americans. 
 
 “I believe that’s his intent,” King said. “I believe we have to consistently engage with pressure, public pressure.” 
 
 In his reference to voting, King appeared to be referring to difficulties faced by African American voters, many of them due to restrictive laws put into effect by Republican legislators. 
 
 Trump, during his campaign, suggested that voters in overwhelmingly African American cities like Philadelphia could be planning to steal the election via voter fraud. 
 
 After the meeting, Trump accompanied King down the elevator and shook his hand before returning upstairs. He did not speak to reporters. ||||| More than 60 Democrats are not attending the Trump inauguration 
 
 CLOSE Many performers have already turned down the opportunity to perform at the inauguration due to not supporting Trump and now Democratic leaders are following suit. USA TODAY NETWORK 
 
 Congressional Democrats may have accepted the outcome of the election by now, but that doesn't mean they have to like it. 
 
 Since December, several dozen House members have said they will not attend Donald Trump's inauguration Friday. The number of Democratic representatives multiplied after Trump insulted John Lewis, the veteran House member and civil rights leader, on Twitter. 
 
 Some simply said they cannot participate in a ceremony that celebrates a president whose platforms contradict their constituents. Others said they will save their energy for the Women's March on Washington, a demonstration including women's rights activists and anti-Trump protesters, scheduled for the next day in the nation's capital. 
 
 Here's a running state-by-state list of which representatives have said they are skipping out: 
 
 Alabama 
 
 Rep. Terri Sewell said in a statement that she wouldn’t attend because of the “blatant disrespect shown by President-elect Trump towards American civil rights icon, my colleague, friend and mentor, the Honorable John Lewis.” 
 
 Sewell did, however, invite Trump and Lewis to join her at the iconic Selma bridge “to walk hand-in-hand across that bridge as one nation, indivisible and united. 
 
 Arizona 
 
 Rep. Raúl Grijalva announced Jan. 13 from the House chamber that he would boycott the inauguration. Instead, he said, he will march back home with his constituents. 
 
 “My absence is not motivated by disrespect for the office, or motivated by disrespect for the government that we have in this great democracy," he said, "but as an individual act – yes, of defiance – at the disrespect shown to millions and millions of Americans by this incoming administration." 
 
 He reminded his peers that while Trump won the election, he lost the popular vote. Grijalva said those who voted against Trump and even those who did not vote because of dissatisfaction of both parties deserve respect. 
 
 Rep. Ruben Gallego also announced Jan. 17 he also would not be attending the inauguration out of protest. 
 
 We must stand against Trump's bigotries- birther conspiracies, attacks on Gold⭐️ parents & civil rights heroes. I won't attend inauguration. — Ruben Gallego (@RepRubenGallego) January 17, 2017 
 
 California 
 
 California is the state with the largest congressional delegation and the most members avoiding the inauguration. There's Rep. Jared Huffman, who on Jan. 7 wrote on Facebook that he would not "sit passively" and celebrate Trump's presidency. 
 
 "I do accept the election results and support the peaceful transfer of power, but it is abundantly clear to me that with Donald Trump as our President, the United States is entering a dark and very dangerous political chapter," he said. "I will do everything I can to limit the damage and the duration of this chapter, and I believe we can get through it." 
 
 Rep. Zoe Lofgren made similar comments to the Los Angeles Times when she told them she wasn't attending. 
 
 Rep. Barbara Lee told USA TODAY that while she would attend Trump's State of the Union in the future, she would not be at the inauguration. Lee said she didn't want to participate in an event made to “celebrate and applaud” Trump over the things he has said. 
 
 Rep. Mark DeSaulnier outlined his reasons for not attending in the following video: 
 
 When #Trump places his hand on the Bible & takes the Oath of Office, he will in that moment, be in violation of that oath & the Constitution pic.twitter.com/mZCQrTua4R — Mark DeSaulnier (@RepDeSaulnier) January 14, 2017 
 
 Several more House members from California decided to boycott the inauguration after Trump insulted Lewis. 
 
 "I'm not going to normalize his behavior," Rep. Ted Lieu told MSNBC. "He's attacked Gold Star parents, veterans such as John McCain, Latinos, Muslim Americans and now John Lewis." 
 
 Meanwhile, Rep. Maxine Waters said she never planned on attending Trump's inauguration anyway. 
 
 I never ever contemplated attending the inauguration or any activities associated w/ @realDonaldTrump. I wouldn't waste my time. — Maxine Waters (@MaxineWaters) January 15, 2017 
 
 Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard, the first Mexican-American woman elected to Congress, told Fusion, " the disparaging remarks the President-elect has made about many groups, including women, Mexicans, and Muslims, are deeply contrary to my values. As a result, I will not be attending the Inauguration." 
 
 Rep. Karen Bass took to social media to have her constituents decide whether she should attend the inauguration. The majority of the Twitter poll's respondents said no. 
 
 I want to hear directly from my constituents! Do you guys think I should attend the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump? — Congressmember Bass (@RepKarenBass) January 15, 2017 
 
 On Jan. 17, Bass announced she would not be attending. 
 
 After receiving an overwhelming response on the twitter poll, I've decided not to attend the inauguration of President-elect Trump. pic.twitter.com/ig4kFn0GGH — Congressmember Bass (@RepKarenBass) January 17, 2017 
 
 Rep. Alan Lowenthal also said he had decided not to attend the inauguration following Trump’s attacks on Lewis. 
 
 The Los Angeles Times also reported that Reps. Grace Napolitano, Raul Ruiz, Juan Vargas, Tony Cárdenas, Judy Chu, Jerry McNerney and Mark Takano won't be attending. 
 
 Florida 
 
 Rep. Darren Soto cited Trump's attacks on Lewis as the reason he was skipping 
 
 “I am deeply disappointed with Trump’s attacks against civil rights hero John Lewis and will not be attending the inauguration as a result,” he told WFTV 9. 
 
 Reps. Alcee Hastings and Fredreka Wilson have also said they will not attend. 
 
 Georgia 
 
 Lewis' announcement that he wouldn't attend the inauguration sparked a response from the president-elect, which prompted other House Democrats to follow suit. 
 
 He told NBC news last week, “I don’t see this president-elect as a legitimate president … I think the Russians participated in helping this man get elected.” 
 
 That's when Trump tweeted that Lewis was "all talk" and suggested he pay more attention to his "crime infested" district. 
 
 Kentucky 
 
 John Yarmuth, Kentucky's lone Democratic congressman, said in a radio interview Monday that he would not attend. Trump, he said, has embarrassed the office of the president. 
 
 "After a great deal of thought, I’ve decided not to attend the inauguration — partially out of deference to my friend John Lewis, who was attacked in a historically inaccurate and insulting way, but more importantly, because I thought about the fact that leading up to the election and up until this weekend, Donald Trump has consistently behaved in a way that has helped destroy a lot of the dignity of the presidency," Yarmuth said. 
 
 New Hampshire 
 
 Rep. Carol Shea-Porter said she would pray instead of attend the inauguration. 
 
 Illinois 
 
 Rep. Luis Gutierrez announced early on he would boycott the inauguration. He first told CNN in December and in January delivered a speech on the House floor explaining his decision. 
 
 "We all heard the tape when Donald Trump was bragging — bragging! — about grabbing women by their private parts without their consent," he said. "It is something I can never un-hear." 
 
 Instead, Gutierrez said he and his wife will attend the Women's March on Washington the next day. 
 
 Rep. Jan Schakowsky announced Jan. 18 she would join her colleagues in skipping he inauguration. She will also attend the Women's March. 
 
 I have decided to join the growing group of my colleagues who will boycott this Friday's Inauguration. pic.twitter.com/5HZt70ZFm9 — Jan Schakowsky (@janschakowsky) January 18, 2017 
 
 Maine 
 
 Rep. Chellie Pingree said Monday at a dinner in Portland, Maine, that she wouldn't attend the inauguration. 
 
 "President-elect Trump’s actions go beyond any kind of reasonable debate — they threaten the constitutional values our country is based on," Pingree said in a statement. "I won’t dignify or normalize those threats by standing by at his ceremony." 
 
 Maryland 
 
 Anthony Brown, the former lieutenant governor who was elected to Congress in November, said he was skipping the inauguration after Trump's tweets about Lewis. 
 
 Skipping Inauguration.@RepJohnLewis a civil rights hero. Enormous responsibility to be POTUS.I respect the office, can't tolerate disrespect — Anthony G. Brown (@AnthonyBrownMD4) January 16, 2017 
 
 Liberal freshman Rep. Jamie Raskin also said he won't attend. "The moral and political legitimacy of this presidency are in the gravest doubt," he said in a statement. 
 
 Massachusetts 
 
 Rep. Katherine Clark said in a statement Jan. 5 that while she respects the office Trump will take over, she believes Trump's policies will threaten the well-being of all Americans. "After discussions with my constituents, I do not feel that I can contribute to normalization of the president-elect's divisive rhetoric by participating in the inauguration." 
 
 Michigan 
 
 A spokesman for Rep. John Conyers told The Hill that he will not attend the inauguration. Conyers, who took office in 1965, is the longest-serving House member and a founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus. 
 
 Minnesota 
 
 Rep. Keith Ellison said in a tweet, "I will not celebrate a man who preaches a politics of division and hate. I won't be attending Donald Trump's inauguration." 
 
 Missouri 
 
 A spokesman for Rep. William Lacy Clay told the St. Louis Dispatch last week that the congressman will spend Inauguration Day back in St. Louis, speaking with school kids. 
 
 New Jersey 
 
 Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman will host an interfaith prayer vigil on Friday in lieu of her attendance at the inauguration. 
 
 “The constituents of the New Jersey’s Twelfth District is a cross section of the many groups and millions of Americans that this incoming Administration has turned its back on," Watson Coleman said in a news release. "Our nation is founded on democracy and inclusion that unfortunately our president-elect refuses to represent." 
 
 Rep. Donald M. Payne Jr. said he will skip the inauguration because he "will not celebrate his swearing-in to an office that he has proven unfit to hold.” 
 
 "His actions and statements have consistently been below the dignity of the office, and there’s no indication that will change. Donald Trump will be our president, and I will work with him if my values permit, and if doing so is in the best interest of my constituents and the nation," Payne said in a statement. "But I will not celebrate his swearing-in to an office that he has proven unfit to hold." 
 
 New York 
 
 Rep. José Serrano tweeted last week that he will not attend the ceremony. Since then, several more House members from New York have announced they will not go, including Jerry Nadler, Adriano Espaillat and Nydia Velazquez. 
 
 Rep. Yvette Clarke joined the inauguration boycott to support Lewis, tweeting "When you insult @repjohnlewis, you insult America." 
 
 Rep. Grace Meng said: "I will work with Mr. Trump whenever possible, but this weekend I march.” 
 
 Rep. Louise Slaughter described Lewis as “like a brother to me” and said she would not attend. 
 
 North Carolina 
 
 Rep. G.K. Butterfield said that he could not "in good conscious attend the inaugural ceremony for President-elect Donald Trump." 
 
 Butterfield said on Twitter that Trump was divisive and "I believe it would be hurtful to my constituents for me to attend the inauguration." 
 
 Rep. Alma Adams said she would be "staying home to continue working toward our priorities and to meet with constituents, many of whom are fearful of what lies ahead." 
 
 Ohio 
 
 Showing solidarity with Lewis, Rep. Marcia Fudge said she would stay in Cleveland on Friday. 
 
 Oregon 
 
 Reps. Earl Blumenauer and Kurt Schrader, told Oregon Public Radio that they will attend anti-Trump events instead of going to the inauguration. 
 
 Blumenauer, who claims to have attended every inauguration since he took office two decades ago, said this one was “not a productive use of my time.” 
 
 Rep. Peter DeFazio said he usually avoids inaugurations and Friday will be no exception. 
 
 Pennsylvania 
 
 Citing the Affordable Care Act repeal, Russian hacking and Lewis, Rep. Dwight Evans tweeted that he would not attend the inauguration. 
 
 Rep. Mike Doyle said he also would skip the inauguration and cited Trump's attacks on Lewis in a tweet. 
 
 Rep. Brendan Boyle said on Facebook he couldn't celebrate something he believed "is a grave mistake." 
 
 Texas 
 
 Rep. Joaquin Castro said he'd stick around D.C. to welcome constituents who were coming for the inauguration but he wouldn't attend the event himself. 
 
 "Every American should respect the office of the presidency and the fact that Donald Trump will be the 45th President of the United States. But winning an election does not mean a man can show contempt for millions of Americans and then expect those very people to celebrate him," Castro said in a statement. 
 
 Rep. Lloyd Doggett said also wouldn't be attending the inauguration. 
 
 "I cannot participate in the inauguration of a person who calls women 'dogs,' " said Rep. Al Green. 
 
 I will not be attending the inauguration this Friday. Read my statement here. pic.twitter.com/4gt6AA4u16 — Lloyd Doggett (@RepLloydDoggett) January 17, 2017 
 
 Rep. Filemon Vela announced Thursday he wouldn't attend the inauguration following some the harassment of migrant students from his district in Washington and Trump's announcement of his final cabinet pick Friday. By nominating former Georgia governor Sonny Perdue to the post of secretary of Agriculture Trump completed his cabinet without one Hispanic. 
 
 Virginia 
 
 Rep. Don Beyer said on Twitter he would not be attending the inauguration for a variety of reasons, including the alleged Russian hacking of election emails. 
 
 I just told hundreds of my constituents that I will not be attending the Inauguration Ceremony this coming Friday. Here is what I said: pic.twitter.com/YLJz5OWjXe — Rep. Don Beyer (@RepDonBeyer) January 16, 2017 
 
 Washington 
 
 Rep. Pramila Jayapal said she will not attend the inauguration. She will be in Washington for an immigration roundtable Friday and for the Women's March on Saturday. 
 
 Rep. Adam Smith said that he also won't attend the inauguration, but it isn't anything against Trump — though he said he has plenty of issues with Trump's proposals and statements. Instead, Smith said he's skipping because "I’d prefer to be home." 
 
 This isn't the first time he's skipped an inauguration either; according to The Stranger he's only attended two inaugurations in the 10 terms he's been in Congress. 
 
 Tennessee 
 
 Rep. Steve Cohen told WMC Action News 5 that while he "would love to attend the inauguration" he wasn't going to because "this president semi-elect does not deserve to be President of the United States. He has not exhibited the characteristics and the values that we hold dear." 
 
 Wisconsin 
 
 Rep. Mark Pocan, citing Russian hacking and offensive Trump tweets, said he will not be at the ceremony. 
 
 After reading classified Russian hacking doc & @realDonaldTrump offensive tweets to @repjohnlewis I will not be attending the Inauguration. pic.twitter.com/wrEeGfqjrZ — Rep. Mark Pocan (@repmarkpocan) January 15, 2017 
 
 But there are some Democrats who say they'll be there despite their concerns about the president-elect. 
 
 Wisconsin Rep. Gwen Moore said she'd be at the inauguration because she wanted to be the face of resistance. 
 
 “I support my colleagues in their decision to boycott the Presidential Inauguration, but knowing how he operates, I suspect President-elect Donald Trump will use this expression of free speech as an excuse to bypass Democrats and to push his extreme agenda with utter impunity. With that in mind, I refuse to be a pawn in the president-elect’s efforts to rally support from congressional Republicans," Moore said in a statement. "As a proud Democrat, I want President-elect Trump to see me front and center as he’s sworn in. I want him to see exactly what his opposition looks like. When he sees me, I want him to see The Resistance." 
 
 Texas Rep. Gene Green said that he would be attending the inauguration and he cited the fact that Trump’s general election opponent would be. “I will attend the Inaugural ceremony to observe the peaceful transfer of authority in our government. I am attending for the same reasons that Secretary Clinton decided to attend — patriotism and a deep commitment to our Republic, not to endorse President-Elect Trump.” 
 
 But Arizona freshman Rep.Tom O’Halleran announced he'd be there and did not bring up any of Trump's past comments or proposals. Instead, the Republican-turned-Democrat cited his desire to work with "anyone, regardless of party, to move our country forward.” 
 
 “The peaceful transfer of power from one president to another is a hallmark of our democracy,” said O’Halleran. “I will be attending the inauguration this week, and I will maintain my open door policy to work with anyone, regardless of party, to move our country forward.” 
 
 Contributing: The (Louisville) Courier-Journal, The (East Brunswick, N.J.) Home News Tribune. 
 
 Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/2jSL44Y ||||| Rep. John Lewis, a champion of the civil rights movement and congressman for 31 years, has been released from an Atlanta hospital one day after falling ill on a plane. 
 
 The 78-year-old Democrat from Georgia had been admitted for "routine observation," according to spokesperson Brenda Jones. 
 
 By Sunday night, the congressman had been released from the hospital. 
 
 "Rep. John Lewis has been released from the hospital this evening," according to a statement. "All tests have been completed, and doctors have given him a 'clean bill of health.' He thanks everyone who shared their thoughts, prayers and concerns during his stay." 
 
 Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images 
 
 Atlanta ABC affiliate WSB reported the congressman fell ill on a plane trip back to Atlanta, where he was to attend an event Saturday night. 
 
 Jones had said Saturday night the civil rights icon was fine and expected to be released on Sunday. 
 
 "There is no cause for alarm," Jones said in an email to ABC News. "He will be fine. He's resting comfortably and expects to be released tomorrow." 
 
 The representative was a close friend of Martin Luther King Jr. during the 1960s and took part in many of the same iconic civil rights moments as King. 
 
 Bettmann Archive/Getty Images 
 
 As chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) in the mid-'60s, he was one of the first Freedom Riders. He and 12 others, six of whom were black, traveled from Washington, D.C., to Louisiana to protest segregated interstate bus travel. He and the group were met by protesters who beat the group of students. 
 
 Lewis walked alongside the civil rights leader in Selma, Alabama, on March 7, 1965, when he was badly beaten by police while crossing the Edmund Pettus Bridge. 
 
 He suffered a fractured skull in the attack. 
 
 AP Photo 
 
 Lewis has served in Congress since January 1987. Currently representing Georgia's 5th Congressional District, he has been re-elected 14 times -- often running unopposed in recent years. 
 
 His activism did not stop in the 1960s, however. He has been an outspoken critic of President Donald Trump and many of his policies since he took office. Recently, he took part in extensive protests against the president's "zero-tolerance" immigration policy. 
 
 Lewis was part of a march in Atlanta on June 30 to praise attendees causing "good trouble, necessary trouble" in trying to keep the pressure on the administration's immigration policy. 
 
 "The world is crying with us," Lewis told the crowd. "We must show the world that we are better than what is going on in America today." 
 
 Joshua Roberts/Reuters FILE 
 
 He skipped the president's first official State of the Union address in January, telling ABC News' "This Week," that "I cannot sit there and listen to him." He also skipped the president's inauguration a year earlier, which brought on an attack from Trump. 
 
 "Congressman John Lewis should finally focus on the burning and crime infested inner-cities of the U.S.," Trump tweeted on Jan. 14, 2017. "I can use all the help I can get!" 
 
 Lewis was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the country's highest civilian honor, in February 2011 by then-President Barack Obama. 
 
 ABC News' Quinn Owen contributed to this report. ||||| State of the Union: The Democratic boycott list grows 
 
 CLOSE Plagued by historically low public approval numbers and the firestorm of the Russia probe, President Donald Trump will look to celebrate his successes and reset his term Tuesday night with his first official State of the Union address. (Jan. 29) AP 
 
 A growing number of Democrats say they plan to boycott President Trump’s first State of the Union address. 
 
 The members are citing objections to Trump’s rhetoric and politics, with several pointing specifically to reports this month that Trump questioned why the U.S. accepts so many immigrants from “s---hole countries” in Africa and said the U.S. didn't need more people from Haiti. 
 
 While more than 60 Democrats skipped Trump’s inauguration, most will attend the address on Tuesday, using the event and their guest selections to highlight concerns about immigration, health, gun violence prevention and sexual misconduct. 
 
 Michael Ahrens, Republican National Committee spokesman, said boycotting politicians “clearly don’t realize that it’s not about them, it’s about the citizens they were elected to represent. 
 
 "By refusing to attend a joint session of Congress, they’re failing to do their jobs and robbing their constituents of the representation they deserve,” Ahrens said. 
 
 Here is a list of Democrats saying they won’t attend: 
 
 Rep. Earl Blumenauer of Oregon 
 
 Blumenauer, the first to announce he will not attend, said he will be in Oregon listening to constituents rather than “listening to yet another destructive and divisive speech by Trump.” He later announced on Facebook that he’ll send an Oregon “DREAMer” — undocumented immigrants brought here as children — in his place, “to remind Trump that these are real people with families and jobs, who are vital to our communities. They deserve certainty and protection.” 
 
 Rep. John Lewis of Georgia 
 
 The civil rights icon, who marched with The Rev. Martin Luther King, announced he wouldn’t attend the speech on MSNBC after reports of Trump’s "s---hole" comments. Lewis called the statements “unreal” and later said, “I cannot, in all the conscience, be in a room with what he has said about so many Americans. I just cannot do it. I wouldn't be honest with myself.” 
 
 Last year, Lewis said he wouldn’t attend Trump’s inauguration because he didn’t consider Trump a “legitimate president.” Trump responded by tweeting that the congressman was “all talk, talk, talk – no action or results.” 
 
 Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington 
 
 The first-term congresswoman said she refuses “to dignify a president who has used the platform of the Oval Office to fan the flames of racism, sexism and hatred — most recently with his vulgar condemnation of Haiti and other African countries.” 
 
 If I felt that attending @realDonaldTrump's State of the Union advanced the interests of Washington's 7th District, the United States, or the global community to which we are so interconnected, I would be there. 
 
 
 
 But it doesn't. Here is why. https://t.co/XvUlUHdgmX — Rep. Pramila Jayapal (@RepJayapal) January 17, 2018 
 
 Rep. Barbara Lee of California 
 
 "I will not attend this State of the Union because this president has not honored nor respected the office of the presidency and has shown a total disregard for our democratic institutions," she said in a statement. 
 
 Rep. Maxine Waters of California 
 
 Waters, an outspoken critic of Trump’s, said on MSNBC, “I don’t trust him, I don’t appreciate him and I wouldn’t waste my time sitting in that House listening to what he has to say. He does not deserve my attention.” 
 
 Rep. Frederica Wilson of Florida 
 
 Rep. Frederica Wilson, D-Fla. (Photo: Joe Skipper, Getty Images) 
 
 Wilson told CNN that "to go would be to honor the President and I don't think he deserves to be honored at this time, after being so hateful towards black people and then black countries, Haiti and the whole continent of Africa. It hurts." 
 
 Wilson and Trump tangled publicly in October when Wilson said Trump told the widow of a U.S. service member killed in Niger that "he knew what he signed up for." Trump denied the claim. 
 
 Rep. Jan Schakowsky of Illinois 
 
 Schakowsky told the Chicago Sun-Times her reasons for skipping the speech include Trump’s so-called “Muslim travel ban,” his failure to denounce Nazis after violence in Charlottesville and his language during the immigration discussion. 
 
 Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York 
 
 “I cannot give this man, who does not respect me, the respect to be in that audience,” Meeks said on MSNBC. 
 
 Rep. Albio Sires of New Jersey 
 
 "The congressman is not attending the State of the Union because many of his constituents are offended by the president's rhetoric and behavior," Sires spokeswoman Erica Daughtrey told N.J. Advance Media. 
 
 Rep. Bobby Rush of Illinois 
 
 “We are watching the presidency erode before our eyes and I, for one, refuse to participate in pomp and circumstance that does nothing but normalize his egregious and hateful behavior,” Rush said in a statement. “This is a presidency that has been built on racism, stupidity, and lies, which has already wasted enough of America’s time and I will not waste any more of mine.” 
 
 Also not attending 
 
 Reps. Juan Vargas of California, Danny Davis of Illinois and Steve Cohen of Tennessee, according to news reports. 
 
 Read or Share this story: https://usat.ly/2FtfJ3P ||||| SANFORD — Calling him “the poster boy for everything wrong with our economy,” Hillary Clinton called on Donald Trump to release his tax returns after slamming him for what she called the “legally dubious” ways he avoided paying taxes. 
 
 Clinton’s rally at the Sanford Civic Center on Tuesday night was part of a swing through the crucial state of Florida, as polls show the race tightening with just a week before the presidential election. 
 
 She told the packed crowd of about 1,000 inside the center – as well as a large overflow crowd outside – that “I’m not taking anything, anyone, any place for granted.” 
 
 “Twenty-six million people in America have already voted, more than 4 million of them right here in Florida,” she said. “If we can keep this up, there’s no doubt – if we vote, we win.” 
 
 Clinton made no mention of the renewed FBI investigation of her emails, an “October surprise” that roiled the campaign on Friday. 
 
 Instead, she focused largely on her Republican opponent. She hit Trump over a New York Times story that detailed the ways he might have avoided paying federal taxes for decades, saying “he has the nerve to call the military a disaster and insult veterans while he hasn’t paid a penny to support those who put on the uniform.” 
 
 Caption Number of migrants caught at Mexican border plunges 40% under Trump The number of migrants caught by Border Patrol agents as they attempt to cross the Southwest border has plunged dramatically. (March 9, 2017) The number of migrants caught by Border Patrol agents as they attempt to cross the Southwest border has plunged dramatically. (March 9, 2017) Caption State bill could eliminate many local ordinances The Florida Legislature is considering a bill which would ban cities and counties from regulating businesses without specific authorization from the state. The Florida Legislature is considering a bill which would ban cities and counties from regulating businesses without specific authorization from the state. 
 
 Releasing his returns, she said, would also reveal “how much he’s actually worth, who he actually does business with, [including] Russian business deals, and it would be interesting to know whether he’s even given a penny to charity.” 
 
 Clinton also attacked Trump for “literally insulting a huge majority of American people,” and quoted former Miss Universe Alicia Mercado’s speech at her rally Tuesday morning in South Florida. 
 
 “As Alicia said today, she refuses to let such a small person let her down.” 
 
 Talking about the Pulse nightclub shootings in Orlando, Clinton vowed “I will defeat ISIS” while also calling for an end to “the epidemic of gun violence.” 
 
 She added, “I cannot come to Sanford without talking about Trayvon Martin,” the teen shot and killed in the city in 2012. “All he did was go to the corner store for a pack of Skittles and was walking back home and his life was cut short.” 
 
 Having gotten to know Martin’s mother, Sybrina Fulton, and other mothers of gun violence victims, “I’m so impressed by how they’ve taken a moment of grief and decided to do everything they could to protect the children of other mothers and fathers. 
 
 “We have a moral obligation to reduce gun violence, and that requires us to stand up against systemic racism and promote justice,” she said. 
 
 She and other speakers, including civil rights icon and U.S. Rep. John Lewis, D-Georgia, called on supporters to vote and get others to vote. 
 
 “I almost died for the right to vote,” Lewis said. “So I must tell you, you must go out and vote, and vote as you never, ever have before. It’s our most sacred, our most powerful non-violent tool we have in society, and we must use it.” 
 
 Asked by the Orlando Sentinel about reports that early vote numbers for African-Americans were lagging behind those of 2012, Lewis said he was sure they would improve. 
 
 “Ministers will go to the pulpits on Sunday and get people to get out and vote,” Lewis said. “The past few days, I’ve been in Chicago, Minnesota, Las Vegas… I feel good about what’s happening. I’m very sure that we’re going to have a great turnout.” 
 
 The crowd, one of the most vocal at any of Clinton’s Central Florida rallies, loudly finished many of Clinton’s more famous lines, such as Michelle Obama’s “When they go low, we go high,” and broke into chants of “No-Show Rubio” while U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy criticized his U.S. Senate opponent, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio. 
 
 Stephanie Murphy, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Congress in District 7, told the crowd that her opponent, incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. John Mica, “did everything he could to stop Barack Obama.” 
 
 “Now, he’s enthusiastically supporting Donald Trump, who did everything he could to de-legitimize our nation’s first African-American president,” Stephanie Murphy said. 
 
 In line before the event, Gloria Cummings of Lake Monroe said she's been "making sure" to do her part in getting African-American voting numbers up. 
 
 "I was actually just at early voting," Cummings said. "We've been getting the word out in all areas." 
 
 slemongello@orlandosentinel.com or 407-418-5920
– Donald Trump's feud with civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis of Georgia was making political headlines on Martin Luther King Day. (The background on the feud is here.) Coverage: The New York Times explores how it further frays Trump's ties with an African-American community already wary of him. "I don't think we have ever had a president so publicly condescending to what black politics means," says a Duke professor. A GOP county commissioner in Georgia's Gwinnett County, Tommy Hunter, is facing calls to resign after he wrote online that Lewis is a "racist pig." See the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. In a speech marking MLK Day, Lewis did not mention Trump, instead telling personal stories of his own civil rights battles and preaching non-violence. "The way of love is a better way," he said, per NBC News. Michelle Obama tweeted her support of Lewis today. Martin Luther King III met with Trump Monday, and while he praised Lewis, he also sought to tamp down the controversy. “Things get said on both sides in the heat of emotion. And at some point in this nation, we’ve got to move forward.” See the Los Angeles Times. So far, nearly 28 Democratic members of Congress vow to skip the inauguration, reports the BBC. A blogger at the liberal Daily Kos says Lewis went too far in saying Trump was not a "legitimate president." Democrats must admit it or face charges of hypocrisy, reads the post here. Mike Pence is "so disappointed" in Lewis, he tells Fox News. Trump slammed Lewis' Atlanta district as crime-ridden and "falling apart," and those who live there were surprised to hear it and eager to rebut the charge. See the Wall Street Journal. Columnist Paul Krugman defends Lewis' original slam of Trump as "an act of patriotism." Read it in the New York Times. Columnist David Weigel writes that Democrats, including Lewis, appear to have learned that "explosive rhetoric" of the sort mastered by Trump is the new normal. Welcome to the "New Rudeness," he writes at the Washington Post.