Rep. Juan Ciscomani of Arizona to give GOP Spanish rebuttal to Biden speech
Feb 6, 2023, 9:26 AM | Updated: 9:27 am
Rep. Juan Ciscomani (R-AZ) delivers remarks in the House Chamber during the third day of elections for Speaker of the House at the U.S. Capitol Building on Jan. 5, 2023, in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
(Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
PHOENIX — Freshman U.S. Rep. Juan Ciscomani of Arizona will deliver the Republican Spanish rebuttal to President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address Tuesday night.
Ciscomani said he was “humbled and honored by the opportunity.”
“My message will be simple and straightforward: The American dream is a dream worth fighting for,” he said in a press release last week.
“The people of my district in Arizona and Americans across our country want accountability, responsibility and sensibility restored in our nation’s capital. As part of the new House majority, I look forward to working with my colleagues to secure our southern Border, strengthen the economy, and do the work the American people expect of us.”
Republicans didn’t give a Spanish rebuttal to Biden’s first State of the Union speech last year.
“Congress is all the better because of the unique perspectives and lived experiences that Juan brings to this institution,” House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said in the release. “I look forward to hearing his response where I know he will share with viewers Republicans’ Commitment to America to empower the American people and hold the Biden administration accountable.”
Humbled and honored by the opportunity to deliver the Republican Address to the Nation in Spanish following the State of the Union.
My message is simple: The American Dream is a dream worth fighting for.
Mi mensaje es sencillo, el sueño americano merece ser defendido. 🇺🇸 https://t.co/PSglNMJm02
— Rep. Juan Ciscomani (@RepCiscomani) February 2, 2023
During his campaign last year, Ciscomani cited his experience of becoming a citizen after his parents immigrated to Arizona from Mexico when he was a boy. Ciscomani, a longtime adviser to former Gov. Doug Ducey, defeated Democrat Kristen Engel to win the open District 6 seat in southeastern Arizona.
“Now my parents’ son is serving in the United States Congress. That’s in some aspects an American dream story of ours. But I think a lot of people out there have American dream stories, and that’s going to be the message,” he told Fox News over the weekend.
Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders will present the primary Republican response after Biden’s speech.
“We’re going to be delivering [the rebuttal] in a way that people can understand, listen, tune in, and, again, demonstrate that we are a wide-tent party,” Ciscomani said during an interview Saturday on “Fox and Friends Weekend.”
“We want to welcome everyone. We’re in this mission of addition, not subtraction or division, and this is just a great way to show what the Republican Party is all about and what we have.”
