Several Democratic members are planning to boycott President Donald Trump's upcoming joint congressional address, citing concerns about the nature of the speech and the administration's policies. Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut will hold a live prebuttal of the speech, expressing his belief that the address will be a 'MAGA pep rally' filled with lies. Sen. Brian Schatz of Hawaii will join Murphy in the prebuttal, which will be livestreamed during Trump's speech.
Rep. Don Beyer of Virginia also announced that he will be skipping the address, stating that he does not wish to participate in what he views as a display of support for policies he disagrees with. House Democrats have been encouraged to bring guests who have been adversely affected by Trump's policies, such as threats to Medicare and SNAP, as well as mass firings of veterans working in civil service.
