President Donald Trump spoke before a joint session of Congress Tuesday night, delivering a highly partisan and sometimes vitriolic State of the Union address. Dozens of Democratic legislators boycotted the speech, while Reps. Al Green and Ilhan Omar spoke out against Trump during it.
Rep. Al Green and other Democrats display criticisms of Trump as some colleagues skip his speech
One of the most contentious moments of Trump’s 2026 State of the Union address started even before Trump began his speech. As Trump entered the chamber and mingled with the crowd on the way to the podium, Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, who heckled Trump during last year’s speech, held up a sign that read “Black People Aren’t Apes,” an apparent reference to the racist video Trump reshared that portrayed former President Barack and first lady Michelle Obama as apes. Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La., pulled Green’s sign down, and Green was later escorted out of the chamber while again raising the sign.
As has been the case during other Trump addresses before Congress, the Democratic side of the chamber mostly stayed seated during Trump’s speech, even as Republicans regularly stood to applaud. The Democratic side of the aisle was also partially empty, with dozens of Democrats boycotting the speech; some instead attended an alternative People’s State of the Union event held Tuesday night. Several of the Democrats who did attend drew attention to the ongoing Epstein files controversy by wearing pins reading “Release the — files” with a black redaction bar covering the name before “files.” Meanwhile, Rep. Norma Torres of California held up signs of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, with the caption “premeditated murder.”
Rep. Norma Torres (D-CA) held up photos of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, the Americans killed by ICE in Minnesota back in January. pic.twitter.com/MNys4egnnk
— The Root (@TheRoot) February 25, 2026
Trump attacks Democrats and defies the Supreme Court during speech
Trump regularly took shots at the Democrats during his speech. “Democrats are destroying this country, but we have stopped it just in the nick of time,” Trump declared at one point. He took a shot at former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi concerning a ban on members of Congress owning stocks. He blamed Democrats for the partial government shutdown currently occurring after congressional Democrats refused to fund the Department of Homeland Security, given the controversies over Immigration and Customs Enforcement policies, with Trump demanding “full and immediate restoration” of DHS funding.
Trump also addressed the recent Supreme Court decision striking down his extensive tariff policy, calling the decision a “very unfortunate ruling.” Several Supreme Court justices sat in the audience, including Trump’s most recent appointee, Amy Coney Barrett, who was one of three conservatives to vote against Trump’s tariff policy. As is the custom for Supreme Court justices, they didn’t visibly react to much of the speech, including when Trump mentioned them. Despite the court’s ruling, the president pledged to continue his tariff policy, saying he would use “fully approved and tested alternative legal statutes” to enact tariffs and declaring that “congressional action will not be necessary” to approve tariffs.
Rep. Ilhan Omar calls out Trump as he continues to vilify immigrants and push a right-wing agenda
Trump often referenced the upcoming 250th anniversary of the United States’ independence during his speech, which lasted about 1 hour and 47 minutes, marking the longest presidential address to Congress, CNN reported. The president bragged of decreases in border crossings, a declining national murder rate, and various economic achievements he claimed to have accomplished after returning to office last year. Trump also boasted of two initiatives named after himself, the recently launched childhood savings accounts known as Trump accounts and the TrumpRX website for prescription drugs; Trump claimed he didn’t name either of the initiatives. He also introduced several guests, including various veterans and military personnel, as well as the Olympic gold medal-winning U.S. men’s hockey team, even announcing that the team’s goalie would receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Trump used the speech and guests to push for several pieces of legislation. He introduced Dalilah Coleman, a small girl who was severely injured in a crash with an 18-wheeler truck driven by an undocumented immigrant. Trump used her story to push for Congress to pass Dalilah’s Law, “barring any state from granting commercial driver’s licenses to illegal aliens.” Trump pushed Congress to pass the SAVE America Act, the strict voter ID law that the House recently passed but is likely stalled in the Senate.
Trump also continued to demonize Somalis and other immigrant communities, targeting Democratic-led states like Minnesota, California and Massachusetts.
In one chilling moment, Trump demanded the audience stand if they agreed that “the first duty of the American government is to protect American citizens, not illegal aliens,” leading to Republicans standing and giving an extended round of applause while Democrats remained seated.
“Isn’t that a shame? You should be ashamed of yourselves, not standing up,” Trump chided Democrats, leading Reps. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan to shout back, with Omar yelling, “You have killed Americans! You should be ashamed!”
Overall, Trump delivered a particularly divisive and partisan State of the Union speech, and he faced a notably strong and multifaceted campaign of pushback from Democrats. Green and Omar delivered some of the most notable rebukes of Trump within the congressional chamber, as many of their Democratic colleagues spoke out with their absences.
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