US President Donald Trump has publicly shared what he identified as the personal phone number of Republican Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas during a disagreement over legislation seeking to make Daylight Saving Time permanent in the United States.
Trump made the disclosure on Truth Social while urging residents of Arkansas to pressure Cotton to support the Sunshine Protection Act, which has already passed the US House of Representatives but remains stalled in the Senate.
The President has backed the legislation, describing it as the “We Don’t Want to Change Our Clocks Twice a Year Act,” and argued that Americans should no longer be required to adjust their clocks twice annually.
Cotton, however, has opposed making Daylight Saving Time permanent, warning that the policy could result in extremely late sunrises during the winter months.
Defending his position, Cotton said previous attempts to establish permanent Daylight Saving Time had eventually been reversed after Americans experienced the consequences.
“No one likes changing the clock, me included, but Congress has enacted permanent Daylight Savings Time multiple times before and repealed it each time once Americans experienced absurdly late sunrises in the winter. Arkansans don’t want their kids going to school in the pitch dark, and I’ll always put Arkansas first,” Cotton wrote.
Trump subsequently challenged Cotton’s argument, insisting that permanent Daylight Saving Time would provide Americans with an additional hour of daylight in the afternoon while eliminating the inconvenience of changing clocks twice a year.
“If Tom Cotton were putting Arkansas first, he would give them an extra hour of daylight and, more importantly, they wouldn’t have to run all over their houses, farms, work places, and everywhere else, twice a year, having to change their Clocks, and often forgetting to do so,” Trump wrote.
The President also encouraged his supporters to contact Cotton directly and promoted the phrase “LOCK THE CLOCK!” in his campaign for the legislation.
The House of Representatives passed the Sunshine Protection Act by a 308-117 vote in July. If enacted, the legislation would make Daylight Saving Time permanent, while allowing states to opt out and retain permanent standard time.
Supporters of the measure say longer afternoon daylight could benefit activities such as golf, tennis, hunting and farming, while also eliminating the cost and inconvenience associated with changing clocks in homes and public buildings.
Opponents, including Cotton, remain concerned about darker winter mornings and the impact on schoolchildren, commuters and workers who begin their activities early in the day.
Trump’s decision to publicly share Cotton’s alleged personal number has added another layer to the growing disagreement between the two Republicans over the proposed changes to the US timekeeping system.
