"Rep. Al Green held up a sign reading "BLACK PEOPLE AREN'T APES" - a reference to a racist video Trump's account posted this month. Green refused to sit as Trump began his speech. Several Republicans verbally confronted Green, with a few trying to wrench the sign out of Green's hands. Eventually, Green was escorted out of the chamber by a House sergeant-at-arms staffer."
"The broader heckling began in earnest shortly after Trump goaded Democrats by pointing out they didn't applaud a line about banning gender transition surgery for minors. "Look, nobody stands up. These people are crazy. I'm telling you, they're crazy," Trump said. Rep. Rashida Tlaib began to heckle, yelling "lies!" and - when Trump began to discuss immigration - "you're killing Americans.""
"Tlaib and Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), who were sitting next to each other, repeatedly heckled Trump, shouting over lines about immigration, crime and foreign policy. At one point in the speech, Tlaib yelled at Trump, "How are those Epstein files? How are those Epstein files? Release them! ... Release the Epstein files!""
Despite House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries instructing Democratic members to avoid disruptions during Trump's joint session address, multiple representatives engaged in protests. Rep. Al Green held a sign reading "BLACK PEOPLE AREN'T APES" referencing a racist video and refused to sit, eventually being escorted out by House sergeants-at-arms. The disruptions escalated when Trump challenged Democrats on applause, prompting Reps. Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar to repeatedly heckle throughout the speech. Tlaib shouted "lies" during immigration discussions and demanded release of Epstein files, while both representatives chanted accusations about killing Americans.
#congressional-disruption #democratic-protest #joint-session-speech #political-heckling #house-floor-conduct
Read at Axios
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