WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump will deliver a formal primetime address to House and Senate lawmakers on Capitol Hill Tuesday evening in a speech that strongly resembles a State of the Union.
But Democrats in Congress, who have sputtered in trying to counter a second Trump presidency and both chambers’ Republican majorities, are navigating how to get through the day.
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Some will seek to utilize the national stage and make a direct appeal to what can often be one of the largest TV audiences a president draws.
This includes using their guest invitations to fill the chamber wings with fired federal workers in protest of Trump and billionaire Elon Musk’s directives to slash the government workforce.
And others are wearing pink to showcase the Trump administration’s impact on issues that affect women. Meanwhile, a small group say they simply won’t be in attendance, instead holding alternative events during the speech.
Here’s a look into Democrats’ plans on the big day.
Who will be skipping Trump’s address?
Keeping with tradition, Democrats will have an official response to Trump’s speech, delivered by Michigan’s Sen. Elissa Slotkin. Expect others in the party to weigh in less formally via social media blasts and camera-grabbing facial expressions.
Another anticipated form of response: empty seats on the left side of the aisle.
Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., on Sunday called the address “a farce” he refuses to be a part of.
“I think it’s going to be a MAGA pep rally, not a serious talk to the nation,” Murphy told CNN’s Dana Bash.
Instead, Murphy and fellow Democrat Sen. Brian Schatz of Hawaii will co-host, along with podcaster and comedian Akilah Hughes, a livestream “prebuttal” beginning before and running through Trump’s speech.
Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., told USA TODAY he will also be skipping Trump’s speech and instead hold a virtual town hall with his constituents.
And Rep. Don Beyer, D-Va., will not be in attendance either, Politico reported.
But these lawmakers could be part of a minority, though. Unlike in Trump’s first term, when Democrats threatened to set records with their boycott numbers, most seem to be on the same page about showing face.
“Leaders of our party, Katherine Clark and Joe Neguse and others, they’re going to be sitting there front and center, holding this President accountable. And I think, you know, I need to join that effort,” said Rep. Lateefah Simon, D-Calif.
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., urged in a letter to his colleagues it is important to have a “strong, determined and dignified” Democratic presence in the audience.
What will be the vibes for Democrats in the chamber today?
During previous Trump speeches to Congress, Democrats would often fill the room with groans, boos, scoffs and even chants as a jab to the president.
“I think Democrats are going to take it with the seriousness that it requires. We’re gonna be somber. We’re not gonna treat this like a normal State of the Union, and we’re gonna push back on some of the worst things that he says,” said Rep. Sara Jacobs, D-Calif.
But former House Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi, who ripped up a copy of Trump’s State of the Union address in 2020, advised her colleagues to let Trump “stew in his own juice,” according to the Washington Post.
“Any demonstration of disagreement, whether it’s visual or whatever, just let him stew in his own juice. Don’t be any grist for the mill to say this was inappropriate,” she said.
And some lawmakers told USA TODAY they won’t be making much noise in the crowd.
“I’m not a yeller,” said Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz. “You can ask my kids.”
“We have a tradition of respecting the office, even if you disagree with the guy,” he added.
Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández, the chairwoman of the Democratic Women’s Caucus, told
TIME magazine that dozens of her members will be wearing pink to protest “Trump’s policies which are negatively impacting women and families.”
“Pink is a color of power and protest,” she told the outlet. “It’s time to rev up the opposition and come at Trump loud and clear.”
The caucus typically organizes a color for their members to wear during presidential addresses. They chose white during former President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address last year to signal their support for reproductive rights.
Democrats invite former federal workers to the joint address
Some Democrats said they will bring federal workers recently cut from their jobs as Musk and Trump lead a campaign to downsize agencies.
Rep. Joe Courtney, D-Conn., for instance, wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that his guest is Gabe D’Alatri ,a Marine veteran who was a project manager at the IRS and was “unjustly fired.”
D’Alatri will “highlight the hit veterans are taking from DOGE,” Courtney said.
Rep. Grace Meng, D-N.Y., will bring 20-year-old army veteran Luke Graziani who was employed at a veterans hospital in New York and was “suddenly laid off” two weeks ago, according to a press release.
“Luke attending the President’s speech as my guest will send a strong and powerful message that it is unacceptable to turn our backs on these dedicated employees, and how doing so will inflict harm on New York and the nation,” she said in a statement.
Other lawmakers bringing former federal employees include Rep. Ritchie Torres, D-N.Y., Rep. Jimmy Panetta, D-Calif., Rep. Brad Schneider, D-Ill., Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., and Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz.
Kelly, however, will be accompanied by a loved one: his twin brother, Scott, a retired NASA astronaut.
“I think our government is – it’s pretty big as a, you know, fiscal challenges, but I don’t think the way to go about it is just, we’re randomly firing people. I mean, some of those people are doing critical functions for our country. I think it’s dangerous,” Scott Kelly told USA TODAY.
