President Donald Trump on Wednesday pushed the Senate to pass the Sunshine Protection Act, expressing frustration over what he called “ridiculous” early sunsets.
The Sunshine Protection Act, which would make daylight saving time permanent nationwide, has already passed the House but is still awaiting Senate approval. Trump said he was waiting to air out his grievances over the bill’s standstill until after the election, which saw Democrats take control of both chambers of Congress.
“Too bad the Senate has not yet approved the Sunshine Protection Act or, the I Don’t Want to Change My Clocks Anymore Act,” Trump said in a Truth Social post. “It’s so dark outside, so early (Sunset was 5:06 P.M., and it was dark by 5:31 P.M. — Isn’t that ridiculous?). Just a few days ago it was so nice and sunny at this same time.
“In addition, everyone’s been running around changing their clocks all over the place,” he wrote. “I didn’t want to make a big deal out of this prior to the Election because I didn’t want to have certain Senators lose their Race, in a landslide, but it is too bad they can’t get it done. The House sent it over to the Senate with great bipartisan support, numerous times (308-117), but the Senate didn’t take it up. We have far bigger priorities, but I will keep fighting for this!”
Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR), who secured reelection Tuesday night, has been a major roadblock for the bill, which passed the House in July. Cotton has opposed ending daylight saving for years, arguing that children would head to school before sunrise and commuters could face safety risks during the winter months. Permanent daylight saving time would provide later sunsets during the winter, but it would also substantially delay sunrise.
Trump has previously blamed Cotton for the bills stalling and had claimed his opposition was “for reasons unknown.” He had hoped for the legislation to hit his desk before Nov. 1, when clocks fall back. At one point, Trump’s frustration boiled over and he released Cotton’s personal cellphone number.
TRUMP RELEASES TOM COTTOM’S CELLPHONE NUMBER OF DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME BILL
The debate over daylight saving time is not new. Nearly every state has weighed legislation related to daylight saving time in the past decade. Due to federal law, states cannot end daylight saving time without congressional approval.
The fate of the Sunshine Protection Act is unknown following Democrats securing the majority in the Senate. The lame-duck Senate has 22 legislative days scheduled before the new Congress is sworn in.
Continue reading...
[ H/T Washington Examiner ]
