Latest: Democrats and Trump clash at the State of the Union in latest heated exchange
WASHINGTON — Tensions boiled over Tuesday night during President Donald Trump’s State of the Union, as Democratic lawmakers shouted at the president over immigration remarks and a fraud investigation tied to the Somali community in Minnesota. The confrontations, walkouts and symbolic guests underscored a forceful pushback from Democrats at a moment of intense partisan acrimony.
Latest confrontation on the House floor: Omar, Tlaib, McBride and the ejection of Al Green
Members of Congress erupted as Trump addressed the chamber. Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., shouted back, "You should be ashamed!" after the president declared that Democrats should be "ashamed. " Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., yelled "Liar!" and, with Omar, at one point shouted, "You have killed Americans!" Both Tlaib and Omar grew louder as the speech progressed and later left the House chamber. Rep. Sarah McBride, D-Del., could also be seen shouting at Trump.
The flare-up followed the ejection of Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, who was booted from the House floor for the second straight year after waving a sign that read "Black People Aren’t Apes!" That sign referenced a video the president posted on social media this month that depicted former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama as apes; the president removed the video, faced widespread bipartisan condemnation, and said he would not apologize.
Immigration remarks and the Somali fraud probe sparked sustained heckling
Much of the shouting came as Trump discussed illegal immigration and a fraud investigation into the Somali community in Minnesota, prompting repeated interjections from Democrats. Rep. Norma Torres, D-Calif., held a sign displaying photos of Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti — two U. S. citizens who were killed by immigration agents in Minneapolis in January — making the immigration debate a visual focal point of the protest on the House floor.
Epstein files, guest choices and direct challenges to the president
More than a dozen House Democrats invited survivors of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein to be their guests, spotlighting a subject the president has publicly sought to move on from. During the address Tlaib yelled, "How about those Epstein files?" Other Democrats, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California, wore pins calling on the Trump administration to release all of the files, turning guest lists and lapel pins into deliberate acts of dissent.
Empty gallery, alternative events and the official Democratic response from Colonial Williamsburg
As Trump delivered a speech of record-breaking length, the Democratic gallery was partially empty. Dozens of Democratic lawmakers attended or spoke at alternative events: a "People's State of the Union" outdoors on the frigid National Mall, and a "State of the Swamp" at the National Press Club near the White House that featured rebuttals from lawmakers and actor Robert De Niro, among others.
The official Democratic response came from Colonial Williamsburg, where Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger criticized the president sharply and predicted voters would reject his administration’s "chaos" in November. Spanberger said, "He’s enriching himself, his family, his friends. The scale of the corruption is unprecedented. " She added, "There’s the cover-up of the Epstein files, the crypto scams, cozying up to foreign princes for airplanes and billionaires for ballrooms, putting his name and face on buildings all over our nation’s capital. This is not what our founders envisioned, not by a long shot. " Concerns over the president’s deportation tactics drove much of the Democratic pushback Tuesday, and Spanberger’s remarks reflected that theme.
One thumb in the eye of the president: tactics, symbolism and what remains unclear
The walkouts, charged heckling, boycotts and the symbolism of carefully selected guests were characterized in the provided account as "one thumb in the eye of Trump after another, " a concerted effort to push back against a president described as wildly unpopular with Democrats. The provided account ends with an incomplete fragment, "Our br"; unclear in the provided context.
