Stacey Abrams has slammed Donald Trump over the US government shutdown – saying he “pawned” workers' livelihoods for political gain.
Ms Abrams, who in last year's elections nearly became the first African-American and first woman governor of Georgia, also rounded on the president for demonising immigrants.
Democrat Ms Abrams was delivering her party’s official rebuke to Mr Trump’s State of the Union address, in which he stuck to his hard line on immigration by renewing his calls for a border wall.
Mr Trump had called for bipartisanship following the government shutdown, but Ms Abrams said: “Just a few weeks ago, I joined volunteers to distribute meals to furloughed federal workers.
"They waited in line for a box of food and a sliver of hope since they hadn't received a pay check in weeks.
“Making their livelihoods a pawn for political games is a disgrace. The shutdown was a stunt engineered by the president of the United States, one that defied every tenet of fairness and abandoned not just our people – but our values.”
In a speech received by critics as striking a tone that might influence the Democrats’ approach against Mr Trump in the 2020 presidential election, Ms Abrams called for “compassion” over immigration policy.
“We know bi-partisanship could craft a 21st century immigration plan,” she said, “but this administration chooses to cage children and tear families apart.
“Compassionate treatment at the border is not the same as open borders. President Reagan understood this. President Obama understood this. Americans understand this. And Democrats stand ready to effectively secure our ports and borders.
“But we must all embrace that from agriculture to healthcare to entrepreneurship, America is made stronger by the presence of immigrants - not walls.”
