"Given my responsibilities in the House, I plan to attend the speech, along with other members of the Democratic leadership, to make clear to the nation that there is a strong opposition party ready, willing and able to serve as a check and balance on the excesses of the administration," Jeffries said in a message to colleagues…
"The decision to attend the Joint Session is a personal
one and we understand that members will come to different conclusions,"
Jeffries noted.
Oh, yes you will be- bullied, that is.
Donald Trump will do the same to Democrats at Tuesday's State of the Union address as he did to Zelensky at Friday's Oval Office meeting. Trump, obviously parroting Moscow's line, looked bad to most of the world and to many Americans. However, many Americans loved Trump's belligerent act toward a foreigner, and Zelensky- whatever sense he made- would have been better off skipping the meeting.
Dignified and righteous, Zelensky sat there and largely took the battering like a man, which is more than the President of the USA is.
That is the action Jeffries is modeling. President Trump will stand at the podium, towering over members of Congress, and excoriate Democrats left, right, and center, and more viciously than he or Vice President Vance did to the Ukrainian leader. And Democrats will take it in and sitting there being pummeled, will look small and weak.
Some Democrats there will mount ineffective or self-defeating protests.. Pink ribbons from the Democratic Women's Caucus, thereby reminding voters that Democrats speak for one gender/sex and not both? Check. Black ribbons from female members of the Congressional Black Caucus, thereby confirming suspicions that Democrats are losers and weak? Check. Empty egg cartons to symbolize the soaring price of eggs which no one will remember in November, 2026? Check. Signs condemning DOGE? Right up Trump's alley. Walking out because the President attacks transexual youth? A reminder that the presidential election was close before Republicans began to run tasteless (and effective) ads a few days before November 5.
There is one possible response to the State of the Union address which would be potent, powerful, and productive (alliteration day!). So close and yet so far, Democratic Senator Ron Wyden will be skipping the President's speech in favor of holding a town hall meeting, to begin at 6:00 p.m. Pacific Time, the official start of the 9:00 p.m. Eastern time State of the Union.
That would be an excellent idea by Wyden- except that it will be online. Doing it online misses the point. "If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does make a sound?" Of course, it makes a sound. However, no one will hear it, and no one will care.
Outside of Oregon- a fairly safe Democratic state- there will be little or no mention of that town hall. There probably will be no audio reported, and obviously there will be no video.
No video. Without pictures or videotape, no national media, no local media outside of that state, will be shown. It is, sadly, the heart and soul of social media. (Facebook once mattered. It no longer does.) Even Twitter would be inconsequential without the attached video or pictures, some real, some doctored.
Moreover, on top of the images which would be disseminated from in-person town hall meetings, Democrats would be seen caring about what their constituents think and feel. These constituents, which other Americans would recognize as voters, will prove to be very angry about Trump-Musk Administration policies. Some would even have personal stories to tell a Representative or Senator, stories which local and national media would play over and over again- with pictures and audio. This, conducted in-person with individuals outraged at the Administration, became national news:
Instead, Representative Jeffries (officially, House Minority Leader Jeffries) would have his Democratic colleagues appear and be repeatedly bashed by a President who will whack them at will. Conservative viewers across the land will see the minority party aa weak and hold them in contempt. Liberals and progressives will view their leaders as acquiescing to craziness or evil which, at least in the short term, will be an accurate perception. Former Representative and Tea Partier is correct:
When Obama was president & I was in Congress, he gave an address to Congress on the economy. I didn’t want to hear Obama’s take on the economy, so I boycotted his speech and went home to hold a town hall to get my constituents’ take on the economy. Democrats should boycott…
— Joe Walsh (@WalshFreedom) March 3, 2025
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