"It's worth ..."

Democrat is thrown out of the chamber during Trump speech

Al Green of Texas was thrown out of the room.

(Bild: WIN MCNAMEE/EPA)

Donald Trump gave an extravagant speech to the US Congress. There were loud and quiet protests among the Democrats. A representative from Texas was thrown out of the chamber for heckling.

"There's only so much bullshit a person can take," said Democratic Representative Sydney Kamlager-Dove from California, for example. She and others left their seats during the US President's marathon speech in which he praised his policies to the skies.

Numerous Democrats held signs for the cameras. These read, for example: "This is NOT normal!" They accuse Trump of endangering democracy with his policies.

Protest during marathon speech
Trump's speech was the longest ever given by a US president before the Houses of Congress. At one hour and 40 minutes, he spoke even longer than the previous record holder, Bill Clinton, in his last State of the Union address to deputies and senators in 2000.

One Democrat MP was escorted out of the chamber after just a few minutes due to heckling. After Trump had said that he had received a mandate from the voters for far-reaching change in the November election, Al Green from the state of Texas intervened: Trump had no mandate, he shouted repeatedly - and was eventually escorted out of the chamber. 

Afterwards, the Texan declared: "I will accept the punishment, but it's worth letting people know that there are some of us who will fight back against this president's desire to cut Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security."

Democrats to voters: hang in there!
Following Trump's confrontational appearance, the Democrats sent a recently sworn-in senator to the lectern for an official rebuttal. The 48-year-old Elissa Slotkin from Michigan accused Trump of catering primarily to his billionaire friends, while people with far less money were feeling the consequences of the trade war he had instigated.

"Food and housing prices are going up, not down - and he has yet to present a plan to deal with either," criticized Slotkin. Trump wants to redistribute trillions of dollars to the richest at the expense of most Americans.

His tariff policy will lead to rising prices for energy and cars, for example. And in terms of foreign policy, Trump is trying to ingratiate himself with dictators such as Russian President Vladimir Putin, while offending allies such as the Canadians.

Slotkin called on politically frustrated people to persevere: "Don't switch off. It's easy to get exhausted, but America needs you now more than ever. Hold elected officials, including myself, accountable. Get organized, pick just one issue you care about, and get involved. Doomscrolling doesn't count."