Democrats, including Congressman Al Green and fired MSNBC host Joy Reid, protested during President Trump’s State of the Union Address on Tuesday night.
Green was ejected from the chamber in the U.S. Capitol for holding a sign that read: “BLACK PEOPLE AREN’T APES!”
The protest referenced a clip shared to Trump’s Truth Social app that showed former President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama depicted as apes.
Trump deleted the clip after fierce backlash from lawmakers and the public.
Joy Reid, a political commentator and host of “The ReidOut,” participated in an anti-Trump protest as hundreds of people gathered on the National Mall.
MY GOODNESS..
This was the Democrats counter protest to President Trump’s State of the Union.. ?? pic.twitter.com/dtgEEIMFKY
— American AF ?? (@iAnonPatriot) February 25, 2026
Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy, a Democrat, introduced his guest, Afghan refugee and immigrant advocate Fereshteh Ganjavi.
Murphy explained he wasn’t at the State of the Union address because “these are not normal times, and Democrats have to stop behaving normally”.
A Trump supporter pushed through the barricades and confronted Sen. Murphy. The Trump supporter was pulled off the stage as the crowd booed.
Joy Reid addressed the booing crowd, saying, “Attention all MAGA trolls… your bulls–t is not welcome here. We are here to hear the truth and to hear from impacted people.”
About 30 lawmakers boycotted the president’s address including Murphy, senators Chris Von Hollen of Maryland and Adam Schiff of California, and representative Greg Casar of Texas.
Protesters chanted “Release the files!”, “Abolish ICE”, “No Money for ICE”, and “Healthcare Not Warfare”.
The real state of the union is a “government that would rather protect powerful people in the Epstein files than the women and the girls who are sexually abused,” said Pennsylvania Rep. Summer Lee.
Earlier on Tuesday, Lee announced that she would introduce articles of impeachment against attorney general Pam Bondi for refusing to comply with a subpoena to release the full unredacted Epstein files.
