United States President Donald Trump gave the longest speech to a joint Congress on Tuesday, March 4. He began on a jubilant tone, praising the achievements of his administration before coming out guns blazing against Democrats and his predecessor Joe Biden. Trump also touched on some of the major issues of tariffs, wokeness, and his top policy priorities after returning to power on January 20.

While Republicans cheered throughout, Democrats mostly responded with silent protests. However, one Democratic lawmaker, Al Green, faced ejection from the House chamber after interrupting Trump’s speech.

Related News

Who Is Al Green?

Al Green represents Texas’ 9th Congressional District, a predominantly African American constituency. The 78-year-old Democrat is currently serving his ninth term in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Born in Louisiana, Green raised his family in humble conditions. A seasoned civil rights activist, he has waged battles on behalf of oppressed peoples throughout his working life. In accordance with his official website, he has at all times defended the voices of the unheard.

Green was educated at Florida A&M University, Howard University, and the Tuskegee Institute (today’s Tuskegee University) before receiving a law degree at the Thurgood Marshall School of Law in 1973.

He is also a member of the Financial Services Committee and the Committee on Homeland Security. Previously, he had been Justice of the Peace for Harris County, Texas, and president of the Houston chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

Green has opposed Donald Trump for many years, joining the call to impeach the former president early in his first term.

Why Was Al Green Removed from the House?

Texas Rep. Al Green interrupted Trump’s joint address to Congress by vociferously protesting the president’s assertion of having a mandate.

At the beginning of Trump’s speech, Green stood up and yelled, “Mr. President, you don’t have a mandate!” about proposed Medicaid reductions. Pointing his cane at Trump repeatedly to stress his protest, his outburst brought both cheers and boos and a brief moment of chaos to the House chamber. Trump paused his speech for a few moments as lawmakers responded to Green’s interruption.

Republican Rep. Nancy Mace was quick to rebuke Green, shouting, “Sit your a** down!” Reuters reported.

House Speaker Mike Johnson then read from House rules aloud, reminding members to conduct themselves in an orderly fashion. “Members are directed to uphold and maintain decorum in the House and to cease any further disruptions,” Johnson said.

Although cautioned, Green remained standing defiantly. Johnson instructed the sergeant-at-arms to have the Democratic lawmaker led out of the chamber.

When Green was escorted out, Republican lawmakers chanted mockingly, “Hey, hey, hey, goodbye.” Such a sergeant-at-arms ejection of a member of Congress from the chamber during a joint session is a rarity in contemporary history.

Green Defends His Protest

Talking to the press after his removal, Green justified that his stand was based on Trump’s budget cuts to Medicaid, a federal health insurance scheme for low-income citizens.

“As a person of conscience, I believe Trump has done things that I think we cannot allow to continue,” Green said to NBC News.

“This whole budget that he has is one that is going to cause Medicaid to be cut, and when he said he had a mandate, it triggered something. It really did. Because he doesn’t have a mandate, and he doesn’t have a mandate to cut health care from poor people,” Green added.

The Texas senator also said he is drafting articles of impeachment on Trump. “This is the richest country in the world, and we have people who don’t have good health care. We’ve got to do better and now we’re about to cut Medicaid, which is for [the] poor,” he told BBC.

Even threatened with disciplinary actions against him over his protest, Green stood his ground, insisting that he would not mind suffering the consequences.

Although Trump promised the public that he would not touch Medicaid, his words have done little to calm fears. New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez went live on Instagram after Trump’s speech, cautioning that Trump and the Republican Party “are coming for Medicaid.”

Other Protests During Trump’s Speech

Green’s disruption was not the only protest type during Trump’s speech. Some Democratic lawmakers, the females among them, showed opposition to the administration’s policies regarding women’s rights and the family by dressing in pink.

Most Democrats also wore blue and yellow ties as a show of solidarity with Ukraine, where Trump recently had a tense argument with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office.

Other Democratic legislators carried signs with the words “Musk steals,” “false,” and “save Medicaid.” They protested Trump’s move to assign billionaire Elon Musk the task of downsizing the federal workforce and trimming government expenses.

Trump’s Policy Announcements

Throughout his long speech, Trump announced several significant policy proposals.

He reaffirmed his government’s war on illegal immigration and gender identity policies, asserting, “There are only two genders—male and female.” He also canceled federal diversity and inclusion programs, saying, “The U.S. will be woke no longer.”

Trump also defended his economic policy, such as suspending military aid to Ukraine and levying new tariffs. He increased tariffs on Chinese products from 10% to 20% and levied a 25% tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico.

The president centered his speech around what he described as the “renewal of the American dream.”