John Boehner Snubs Obama Invite To Arizona Memorial, Hosts RNC Cocktail Party Instead

John Boehner is taking heat from some Democrats after skipping out on Wednesday's memorial service for the shooting victims in Arizona and instead hosting a cocktail party for the Republican National Committee.
The Ohio Republican turned down President Obama's invitation to travel on Air Force One to Tucson, Politico reported.

"It is disrespectful for Speaker Boehner to skip joining the President's and bipartisan congressional delegation to the Tucson Memorial so he could host a Washington D.C. cocktail party for RNC members," a Democratic leadership aide told the political website.

Boehner held a 7 p.m. cocktail reception for 168 RNC members who are in Washington for an annual meeting. The event, which took place at a Maryland resort, was sponsored by the Ohio Republican's political action committee

The cocktail party coincided with the 8 p.m. EST memorial ceremony at the University of Arizona in Tucson, where a lone gunman killed six people and injured more than a dozen, including Rep. Gabrielle Giffords on Saturday.

The memorial was attended by a number of figureheads, including President Obama, Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and Republican Gov. Jan Brewer.

Boehner is backing Maria Cino, one of four candidates hoping to unseat Chairman Michael Steele, in the election for RNC chairman on Friday.

But the reception was billed as a chance for the Boehner to meet with RNC delegates in his new role as House leader.

"Yesterday, Rep. Giffords' colleagues on both sides of the aisle honored her and mourned those who were lost," Michael Steel, a spokesman for Boehner told the Daily News. "The Speaker felt his place was here in the House, with them,"

Source: NY Daily News

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