Rep. Pete King (R-N.Y.) on Tuesday criticized people who booed First Lady Melania Trump at a youth opioid summit in Baltimore, Maryland, and he didn’t mince words.
“Absolutely disgraceful that @FLOTUS was repeatedly booed at Youth Opioid Summit in Baltimore. If any issue should be free from abusive, rude behavior, it should be protecting kids from opioids. Has the left no sense of decency?!?” he tweeted on Tuesday.
The first lady was in Baltimore to talk to students about opioid use and its dangers as part of her “Be Best” campaign. But as she spoke, some in the audience booed her, according to video footage of the event.
“Thank you to all of the students who are here. I am so proud of you for the bravery it takes to share that you have been strongly affected by the opioid epidemic in some way,” the first lady said above the boos. She held her talk at the University of Maryland in Baltimore County.
According to the City of Baltimore, in 2017, there were 692 opioid-related deaths in the city.
Several dozen students had stood when the announcer asked them to stand if they had lost someone to drugs.
She spoke for about five minutes.The White House has not issued a statement about the matter.
The youth summit is sponsored by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and actor Mark Wahlberg’s youth foundation to help educate students, teachers, and parents about opioid use and misuse.