WASHINGTON, D.C. -- “It was good”
That was Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis’ reaction when asked Tuesday night what she thought of President Barack Obama’s final State of the Union address.
Davis, who spent five days in jail for defying federal court orders and refusing same-sex marriage licenses, was given tickets to the president's final State of the Union address, an invitation-only event.
She told AFP reporterIvan Couronne she decided to make the trip from Kentucky to Capitol Hill for Obama's State of the Union address to provide "encouragement" to "all Christians."
“(I'm here) for Christians who want to stay and make a difference,” Davis said.
En exclusivité mondiale, Kim Davis pour l'AFP. "Je voulais encourager tous les Chrétiens" pic.twitter.com/yoCzflde2m
— Ivan Couronne (@ivancouronne) January 13, 2016
Davis' lawyer, Mat Staver, announced Tuesday morning he and Davis would attend the speech. Congressman Jim Jordan of Ohio, who leads the conservative House Freedom Caucus, acknowledged that his staff gave Davis a ticket.
First lady Michelle Obama, on the other hand, invited Cincinnati resident Jim Obergefell, lead plaintiff in the case in which the United States Supreme Court effectively legalized gay marriage across the nation. He sat in the box with the first lady and Jill Biden, the vice president's wife.
After the Supreme Court's decision, Davis, the clerk of Rowan County, cited "God's authority" and refused to issue marriage licenses, despite a series of federal court orders. She quickly became a darling of the religious right.
Politicians, including presidential candidates Ted Cruz and Mike Huckabee, flocked to a rally on the jailhouse lawn during her brief stint behind bars.
