"We are better than that."
Irish Labour Party Senator Aodhán Ó Ríordáin has slammed the idea of extending an invitation to US President Donald Trump to visit Ireland.
Ó'Riordáin's statement comes after
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar stated his intention to invite President Trump to Ireland when they meet in Washington DC.
The Taoiseach had made the announcement ahead of his meeting with Trump in Washington DC, telling reporters that his predecessor Enda Kenny's invitation still stands.
"He has invited me to his house and I think it is just normal hospitality that when someone invites you their house and their country that you reciprocate the invitation," he said.
"I'm not into golf so I won't be playing golf with him if he comes to Doonbeg but perhaps it will be an opportunity for him to potentially visit some of the Irish companies that invest in the US."
O'Ríordáin
took to Twitter to release a statement on the Taoiseach's pending invite.
https://twitter.com/AodhanORiordain/status/973956271673171968
In the statement, the senator wrote: "President Trump is the most dangerous of modern American Presidents, with his hateful anti-immigrant rhetoric dividing America and preying on the most vulnerable of Americans.
"Trump has no place in Ireland. The Taoiseach insults us all by inviting him," the statement continued.
Ó'Ríordáin, a spokesperson on Education and Skills, Gaeilge and the Gaeltacht, has also urged Irish people who will be in New York City on 16 March to take an Irish Stand against Trump and join him in a "global call for justice and equality".
The senator, amongst other notable Irish guests, will take an
Irish Stand on St. Patrick’s Eve at the Riverside Church, 490 Riverside Drive where attendees will honour Ireland's history of migrants with acts of unity rather than divide.
Irish Stand will be an evening of song, story, and prose, and will showcase a diverse community of artists and activists.
Tickets range between $8 - $20, with all proceeds from the event supporting the work of the New York Civil Liberties Union Foundation.
