President Donald Trump canceled the U.S. delegation’s trip to the global economic summit in Davos hours after he denied House Speaker Nancy Pelosi a plane to visit U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
“Out of consideration for the 800,000 great American workers not receiving pay and to ensure his team can assist as needed, President Trump has canceled his Delegation’s trip to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland,” White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said Thursday in a statement.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin was to lead the delegation, which was also to include Secretary of State Michael Pompeo and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross. Trump had planned to attend but previously canceled his own travel to the event because of the shutdown
Trump informed Pelosi earlier Thursday that she couldn’t use a military plane to visit Afghanistan barely an hour before she was to depart, saying she should stay in Washington to negotiate. Several Democratic members of Congress swiftly criticized Mnuchin for going to the Swiss ski resort to meet with the financial elite and heads of state while Trump was preventing the speaker from seeing troops in a war zone.
Pelosi had not announced her trip, which likely would not have been made public in advance for her security. She had planned to depart Thursday afternoon, according to a person with knowledge of her itinerary. Trump’s move outraged Democrats, who questioned whether he had the authority to control congressional travel.
House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal summoned Mnuchin on Thursday for a hearing on the economic impact of the shutdown on Jan. 24, when he was scheduled to depart Davos.
