Rep. Al Green, a Democrat, was escorted out of the House chamber just moments into President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address Tuesday night after unfurling a sign that read: “Black people aren’t apes.”
Republicans chanted “U.S.A” as Green was walked out of the chamber by staff of the chamber’s Sergeant at Arms. A brief scuffle ensued when Rep. Troy Nehls attempted to grab Green’s sign, and the two exchanged words.
“Thank you for that,” Trump said to the cheers as Green was escorted from the floor Tuesday night. It was the second year in a row that he was ejected from the annual address.
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The Texas congressman addressed reporters following the incident, saying of Trump: “Judging from the expression on his face, he got the message.”
When asked about why he opted to stage another scene at the State of the Union, Green told NOTUS that it was “the only forum” through which he could speak to the president directly. “There aren’t people who are willing to confront him up close and tell him this. He doesn’t get that kind of information, it seems, from people around him,” Green added.
His sign was seemingly in reference to a Truth Social post made by Trump earlier this month depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as apes. The clip was deleted after backlash from both Democrats and Republicans. After defending the video and calling the response “fake outrage,” the White House later said it was posted by an employee.
“A White House staffer erroneously made the post. It has been taken down,” an official said. A source close to Trump told NOTUS at the time that he “did not watch the video beforehand, a staffer reposted it.”
Green was also kicked out of last year’s joint address after heckling the president about cuts to Medicaid. At the time, Congress was in the middle of bitter budget negotiations where Republicans proposed cuts to the federal budget that included Medicaid.
“He has no mandate to cut Medicaid. You don’t have a mandate,” Green shouted, as other Democrats booed the president’s comments.
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