Issa And Towns Break The Ice

Reps. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) and Edolphus Towns (D-N.Y) will sit together during President Obama’s State of the Union address on Tuesday night.

The pair announced the news in a joint statement.

“We cannot advance the solutions needed to address the challenges facing our nation unless we are first willing to move beyond the partisan entrenchments that too often stand in the way of progress,” Issa and Towns said.

Issa replaced Towns this year as Chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee in the new Republican-controlled House. Towns, meanwhile, was replaced as the committee’s top Democrat by Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), who carries more of an attack-dog style than his predecessor.

Cummings and Issa have become engaged in a spat since roughly the start of the new year, which is likely why they will not be seated together during the address.