President Barack Obama w=
ill address both chambers of Congress Thursday to unveil his plan to create j=
obs, but not everyone plans to attend.

Despite buzz that Congress migh=
t ring in a new era of bipartisanship by choosing “prom night” seating for t=
he speech — crossing aisle to sit with members of the o=
ther party — some Republicans are threatening to boycott the speech altoget=
her. Their reasons range from opposition to what they call a “political spee=
ch” to a desire not to miss the first football game of the NFL season.

Having a number of members skip a president’s joint address is not unpreced=
ented, however. The last time was in January 1999, when multiple members — l=
ed by Speaker of the House Dennis Hassert — skipped President Bill Clinton’=
s State of the Union, feeling that is was “disrespectful” to a Congress in t=
he middle of an impeachment process. Rep. William Clay skipped George H. W. B=
ush’s 1992 address because he didn’t want to deal with long commute home lat=
e at night.

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M=
ore on Republicans
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