Kentucky clerk Kim Davis said Tuesday
that she attended President Barack Obama's final State of the Union
address to provide “encouragement” to “all Christians.”
Davis is the elected clerk of Rowan
County, Kentucky who last year defied a federal judge's ruling
ordering her office to issue marriage licenses to all qualified
couples. Davis refused, claiming that to issue such licenses to gay
and lesbian couples would violate her conscience. Her unsuccessful
attempt to keep her office from issuing such licenses turned her into
a Christian celebrity.
After the president's speech, Davis was
asked about her attendance by Ivan Couronne of the AFP.
“I just want to be an encouragement …
to all Christians who want to stay and make a difference,” Davis
answered.
“What did you think of the
president's speech?” Couronne asked.
“It was good,” she said.
The question of who invited Davis was
answered late Tuesday when an aide to Rep. Jim Jordan revealed that
the Ohio Republican's office had extended an invitation to Davis.
“Kim Davis used our ticket,” a
spokesperson for Jordan said. “Our staff heard from the Family
Research Council that Ms. Davis and her family hoped to attend the
State of the Union address and so we offered a ticket.”