On March 6th, 2025, Texas Representative Al Green was censured for disrupting President Donald Trump’s address to the joint session of Congress with protests about Medicaid cuts by the current administration. Media and government officials such as New Jersey Senator Cory Booker have complained about a lack of ‘decorum’ in Representative Green’s actions and questioned the efficacy of this form of resistance. More Democrats need to fight like Al Green and stop giving Republicans free reign over government.
In the lead up to this event, Democratic resistance on the federal level has been nonexistent. No one has done anything to prevent the administration’s actions, and have in fact acquiesced to some of the administration’s demands. One important example of this is the Laken-Riley act. This act removed due process for immigrants in the US. The act reads, “Under this bill, DHS must detain an individual who has been charged with, arrested for, convicted of, or admits to having committed acts that constitute the essential elements of burglary, theft, larceny, or shoplifting.” It allows for the permanent detention of ‘aliens’, even if they have not been convicted of a crime. This bill was passed by both Republicans and Democrats. 50 Democrats voted for it in the House, and twelve in the Senate. This bill stands against everything Democrats have claimed to support and the policies their voters want.
Democratic inaction becomes even less defensible considering that the US government is designed to preserve power for the minority, and to allow minority groups to have a voice in the government. When interviewed after the incident on the floor, Al Green mentioned that because of the overwhelming support for the program, the president did not have a ‘mandate to cut medicaid.’ This is a reference to an often repeated claim that due to the Republican Party’s overwhelming victory in the 2024 elections, voters have sanctioned government overreach from Republicans. This is ridiculous, especially given the popularity of Medicaid.
Over the last 15 years, Republicans have perfectly exemplified how to use the power of the minority. Both the Obama and Biden Administrations were constantly hampered by Republican interference even when Republicans were the minority party. One example is consistently threatening to let the government shut down to force the Democrats’ hand. Democrats are refusing to do the same, instead passing along whatever bills the Republicans request.
Democrats need to start resisting if they truly believe that the actions of the current administration are wrong. Democrats are hoping that Republicans implode and they won’t have to take a stance on anything: that the country will just run back to them after the disastrous term looming ahead of us. This strategy, while potentially effective, ignores the massive harm that Republicans have been able to do to the economy, marginalized groups, and America’s standing in the world in only two months. Al Green stood up and told the American people what he believed in, and that is how the Democrats need to move forward, standing firmly for their beliefs.
