Democrats not invited to Trump's first state dinner

US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump have not extended invitations to Democrats from Congress to attend their first state dinner, a media report said.

This year, the guest list for the state dinner slated for Tuesday was whittled to around 120 people, down from highs of 350 or so people who attended previous bipartisan and media-filled dinners featuring celebrities and pop icons like Beyonce, The New York Times reported on Monday.

The Washington National Opera will perform this year at the dinner, the White House said.

Typically the leadership of the opposing party is invited to state dinners, but the Trumps threw out that tradition as they also shunned journalists, who in previous administrations received a handful of invitations.

According to a White House official, the list was so small that after the must-invite American government officials and the large French delegation including President Emmanuel Macron, there was room for Trump to personally invite only four people.

However, one Democrat made it to the list -- John Bel Edwards, the governor of Louisiana, the official said.

Keeping with tradition, not all cabinet members are expected to attend, although Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and his wife, Louise Linton, made the cut.

The full guest list is expected to be released on Tuesday, right before the start of the dinner.

There will be subtle hints at bipartisanship in the decor: Along with 1,200 Obama-inspired cherry blossom branches to decorate the Cross Hall, Melania Trump will use china from the Clinton White House, reports The New York Times.

Melania Trump chose white sweet peas and white lilacs for the tables in the State Dining Room, and it was her idea to host Macron and his wife, Brigitte, for a private dinner on Monday evening at Mount Vernon, according to East Wing aide Rickie Niceta.

Mount Vernon was home to America's first president, George Washington, who hosted the Marquis de Lafayette there years after the two fought as allies in the Revolutionary War.

--IANS

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