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Trump renews call to Senate Republicans

The debate over clock changes in the United States moved back into the spotlight after President Donald Trump stepped up pressure on Senate Republicans. In social media posts on Saturday, Trump said legislation to keep daylight saving time in place year-round was being held up in the Senate and blamed Republican Senator Tom Cotton for the delay.

Trump said the Sunshine Protection Act, which passed the House of Representatives in July by a vote of 308 to 117, should also clear the Senate. The president has personally preferred to call the measure the “No More Changing of Clocks Act” and wants to end the twice-yearly move of clocks forward and back.

Trump also posted messages urging voters in Arkansas to pressure Cotton. In one post, he shared what he said was the senator’s phone number. The report said an automated message indicated the voicemail box was full when the number was called, while Cotton’s office and the White House did not respond to requests for comment.

What supporters and critics say

Trump says year-round daylight saving time would especially increase afternoon daylight. He argues that it would make daily life easier and eliminate the need for people to adjust clocks at home, at work and on farms.

Trump’s main arguments in favor of the proposal include:

  • Longer daylight in the afternoon,
  • An end to switching clocks twice a year,
  • Greater flexibility for sports events such as the PGA Tour to finish tournaments.

The president also said the PGA Tour needs more afternoon light and pointed to a support letter from Brian Rolapp, the tour’s chief executive. Trump, who spent Saturday at his golf club in Sterling, Virginia, said people around him had complained that evenings were getting dark too early after the mandatory clock change.

Cotton’s reservations and uncertainty in the Senate

Cotton has previously opposed the bill. In a speech on the Senate floor last year, he said farmers, construction workers, commuters and schoolchildren could be forced to start winter days in the dark.

The debate is not new. In 1974, the US Congress temporarily approved year-round daylight saving time because of the energy crisis, but the law was repealed in less than a year after safety concerns, including children going to school before sunrise.

Meanwhile, the Senate schedule is clouding the bill’s prospects. Senators left Washington this week and there is no clear plan for them to return before the November 3 midterm elections. Louisiana Senator John Kennedy said he was not optimistic about bringing Trump’s push to a vote, while Senate Republican Leader John Thune was not expected to bring the bill to the floor before Election Day.

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