President Donald Trump delivered the first joint address to Congress of his second term on Tuesday, but the Republican leader was met with harsh pushback during his speech from those across the aisle.
The president conveyed several messages throughout his speech, talking about the achievements he’s made in his first six weeks in office, the failures of his predecessor, and several other points.
Heckling Rep. removed
At the start of the evening, Trump was interrupted and heckled by Rep. Al Green (D-TX), who stood to yell at the president, only stopping after Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) directed the Sergeant at Arms to have him removed from the chamber.
“You don’t have a mandate,” Green could be heard saying while stopping Trump’s speech.
“I’ll accept the punishment, but it’s worth it to let people know that there are some of us who are going to stand up against this president's desire to cut Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security,” Green told reporters after being removed.
Despite the delay at the beginning of his speech, Trump didn’t cut his message short, as he spoke for more than one hour and 39 minutes, setting the record for the longest speech delivered to lawmakers in modern history.
Protest from Democrats
Democrats were clearly protesting the president over his actions in his first month in office, which has included a flurry of executive actions that have ended DEI efforts, resulted in mass layoffs, stopped federal funding, and more.
Trump addressed the disdain he was receiving from Democrats, saying it was “very sad” and that it “shouldn’t be this way.”
“I realize there is absolutely nothing I can say to make them happy or make them stand and smile or applaud,” Trump said while speaking of the Democrats in the chamber. “I could find a cure to the most devastating diseases. A disease that would wipe out entire nations or announce the answers to the greatest economy in history…and these people sitting right here will not clap, will not stand, and certainly will not cheer for these astronomical achievements.”
Several Democratic lawmakers were joined by former federal workers who were recently laid off from their jobs with the government. Others held up signs throughout the night that said things like “Save Medicaid,” “False,” “Musk Steals,” and “That’s a lie.”
Rep. Stansbury (D-N.M.) even had her sign, which said “This is NOT Normal,” ripped out of his hands and thrown in the air by Rep. Lance Gooden (R-TX).
Other Democrats decided they didn’t want to sit through the speech, getting up and leaving the chamber at different points. Those who left included Reps. Jasmine Crockett (MO), Maxwell Frost (FL), and Jamie Raskin (MD).
Trump’s thoughts
Trump hit on several trending topics throughout his almost two hours with the microphone. Among the most timely were his thoughts on Ukraine and the amount of funding the U.S. has given the country.
While he said the country has given too much support, he appeared to be softening to Ukraine just days after his fight with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office. Trump even shared that he had received a letter from Zelensky and said it was “important” that peace be reached.
Trump also hit on immigration, earning one of his biggest roars of the evening when he lambasted previous comments that legislation was needed to curb migration across the border.
“It turned out all we really needed was a new president,” he said, referring to the stark drop in border crossings since he returned to office.
Tariffs were another point he brought up, discussing the potential economic impact they might have on the U.S. but insisting that they will help make the country richer.
“Tariffs are about making America rich again and making America great again. And it’s happening, and it will happen rather quickly,” Trump said.
“There’ll be a little disturbance, but we’re okay with that. It won’t be much,” Trump added.