Over a dozen House and Senate Democrats will skip the State of the Union address to attend a rally. Critics accuse Trump of lying, scapegoating, and offering no solutions, focusing on issues like affordability and corruption.
will skip the State of the Union to instead attend a rally on the National Mall. Click here to read theReps. Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar yell at President Donald Trump during his State of the Union address on Tuesday, Feb.
24, 2026, in Washington. When Trump asked members to stand up if they agreed that the “duty of the American government is to protect American citizens, not illegal aliens,” all Democrats stayed seated. Reps.“In his speech tonight, the president did what he always does,” she said. “He lied, he scapegoated, and he distracted. And he offered no real solutions to our nation’s pressing challenges, so many of which he is actively making worse.” The Democratic governor went on to claim Trump is trying to “divide” and “enrage” the public, which she believes he is doing purposefully to benefit himself and his inner circle. “Who benefits from his rhetoric, his policies, his actions, the short list of laws he’s pushed through this Republican Congress? Somebody must be benefiting,” she continued. “He’s enriching himself, his family, his friends. The scale of the corruption is unprecedented.” Spanberger cited his handling of the Epstein files, billionaire donations for the White House ballroom project, and his decision to name federal buildings after himself as ways in which Trump is corrupt.closing his eyes and holding his head up with his hand while seated around an hour into the address. The clip falls in line with Democrats’ initial hits at Trump’s address as they attempt to paint it as boring.“Is the president working to make life more affordable for you and your family?” she asked in front of a live audience for her rebuttal to Trump’s speech. The governor noted she won the general election by 15 percentage points last fall on the affordability issue, which Trump later focused on in his economic messaging. “Here in Virginia, I am working with our state legislature to lower costs and make the commonwealth more affordable,” Spanberger said. “And it’s not just me. Democrats across the country are laser-focused on affordability in our nation’s capital and in state capitals and communities across America in the most innovative and exceptional nation in the history of the world. “Americans deserve to know that their leaders are focused on addressing the problems that keep them up at night — problems that dictate where you live, whether you can afford to start a business, or whether you have to skip a prescription in order to buy groceries.” as another newly elected Democrat who is focused on the cost of living in her state. Like Spanberger, Sherrill is a former congresswoman.Leavitt listed the following instances that she believed deserved applause: “Putting American citizens over illegal aliens,” “voter ID laws,” “the murder rate at the lowest since 1900,” “keeping violent criminals locked up,” “protecting parental rights,” “stopping fraud,” angel families,” “price transparency,” “taking on drug cartels,” “no tax on tips, overtime, and Social Security,” and “the most secure border in history.” “The contrast could not be clearer: Democrats are crazy!” Leavitt wrote. “President Trump and Republicans are for common sense!” Leavitt’s messaging echoes the words of the president, who slammed Democrats as “crazy” for not standing over certain lines and told them, “You should be ashamed.”Gov. Abigail Spanberger listens to President Donald Trump's State of the Union address on Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2026, in Williamsburg, Virginia. Spanberger will deliver the Democratic response after the address. The new governor challenged Trump’s messaging on affordability, an issue she focused on during her 2025 gubernatorial campaign.Normally, State of the Union rebuttals are delivered by sitting members of Congress. Spanberger was once a member of Congress before she became governor last month.Medal of Honor “I’ve always wanted the congressional Medal of Honor, but I was informed I’m not allowed to give it to myself, and I wouldn’t know why I’d be taking it,” Donald Trump said. Melania Trump awarded the medal to Williams, who served in World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. Williams flew 220 missions over Korea in disguise, according to the president. Donald Trump, who has never served in the military himself, earned a loud laugh with his statement that he covets the medal., the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. During the Korean War, Williams flew more than 220 secret missions into Korea in 1952. “His story was secret for over 50 years,” Donald Trump said. “He didn’t even want to tell his wife, but the legend grew and grew. Tonight, at 100 years old, this brave Navy captain is finally getting the recognition he deserves. He was a legend long before this evening.” After the first lady presented the medal, Williams received a standing ovation and applause for a long amount of time. Once the applause died down, Donald Trump made a joke. “I’ve always wanted the Congressional Medal of Honor, but I was informed I’m not allowed to give it to myself. And I wouldn’t know why I’d be taking it,” he quipped.Márquez entered the chamber and reunited with members of his family as the president recounted the successful military operation to kidnap formerGov. Abigail Spanberger speaks after being sworn into office at the Virginia State Capitol, Jan. 17, 2026, in Richmond, Virginia. for six years, became the first woman elected governor of the Southern state, flipping control of the office from Republican to Democrat in November. A mother of three school-aged daughters, Spanberger was also a former CIA case officer who worked undercover to prevent terrorist attacks and track cartels. Her speech is expected to focus on affordability, including the high costs of housing, healthcare, energy, and groceries. She is also expected to address how Trump’s policies have created global uncertainty and to highlight what ordinary citizens can do to push back and get involved heading into November’s midterm elections. “We are at a defining moment in our nation’s history,” Spanberger said in a statement ahead of her address. “Virginians and Americans across the country are contending with rising costs, chaos in their communities, and a real fear of what each day might bring.” address is widely viewed as a prestigious assignment and who the party chooses often signals who it sees as an emerging leader. first State of the Union address. His awkward introduction, which was compared to Kenneth the Page’s character from “30 Rock,” dogged him, and his 2016 presidential run ended in a thud. Former off-camera stare made her the joke of late-night comedians, as did then-Florida House Speaker Marco Rubio’s dry mouth and near-constant water-sipping. Republican Sen. Katie Britt of Alabama’s kitchen-table monologuePresident Donald Trump delivers his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress in the House chamber at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2026. “Look at Space Force. Space Force is my baby,” he said. “My baby is becoming so important.” Trump established the Space Force, the sixth independent branch of the U.S. Armed Forces, in December 2019 during his first term. The branch is responsible for satellite communications, missile warnings, and environmental monitoring.Trump said he was “so proud” of the U.S. military, which he noted is a “different fighting force than we had years ago.” He pointed to the operation that led to the capture of former Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro as an example of the the American military’s greatness. set a record for the longest State of the Union address in history Tuesday night with a speech that lasted for 108 minutes. Trump bested his previous mark, set last year, of 99 1/2 minutes. That speech, though, was not an official State of the Union address but an address to a joint session of Trump had previewed that this year’s speech would be a long one, saying before it began that “it’s going to be a long speech because we have so much to talk about.” Trump tends to speak for longer than other presidents from the modern era. His previous State of the Union addresses averaged over an hour and 20 minutes, deal, Trump reiterated his pledge to “never allow the world’s No. 1 sponsor of terror, which they are by far, to have a nuclear weapon.” Although Trump has faced a friendly fire campaign from MAGA defectors such as Tucker Carlson and former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene over last summer’s Operation Midnight Hammer, Trump’s decisive actions against the Iranian regime, far from being an about-face, are a fulfillment of a decade’s worth of promises. Trump has railed against the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action since former President Barack Obama originally brokered it. In 2015, Trump called the JCPOA a “dangerous” and “bad deal” that Obama negotiated “from desperation,” and the year later, Trump insisted that “under a Trump administration, Iran will never, never be allowed to have a nuclear weapon.” After 10 years of that pledge, Trump is finally warning the ayatollah that time is up.refugee Iryna Zarutska was killed by a man who “came in through open borders,” though the murder suspect is not an “She had escaped a brutal war only to be slain by a hardened criminal set free to kill in America, came in through open borders,” Trump said., North Carolina. He did not immigrate to the United States or come through “open borders,” as the president suggested, but is a repeat violent offender. Brown was born in the U.S. in Charlotte,
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