Trump, Full of Smiles and Optimism, Returns to a Capitol Hill Where Democrats Are Rendered Sullen and Silent

President Trump is celebrating Tuesday’s speech to a joint session of Congress as a great success, leaving opponents frothing. With their usual strategies failing to score points, Democrats are at a loss for a future path to victory.In Mr. Trump’s 100-minute speech — too long by the usual standards — even those who despise him were trying to solve the riddle of his success. Opponents like Senator Sanders who left before the end did so to post about the speech.The deck is stacked in the favor of any president who addresses Congress. Democrats tried to disrupt the disrupter, but one of the things that makes Mr. Trump a political outlier is that he’s impervious to even legitimate criticism, much less snark.As Mr. Trump strode into the chamber, Democrats made a point to stand and ignore him, some turning their backs. This personified America’s current dynamic: A grinning, gladhanding president on the move and an opposition party frozen like statues.Some Democrats held up paddle signs with slogans like “Musk Steals.” It looked like an auction and was a gift to meme-makers who began photoshopping in messages of their own. Party leaders, seeing these risks, had told members “no signs, no props and no attention-grabbing stunts,” according to CNN. But as Mr. Trump began, the Democrat from Texas, Congressman Alexander “Al” Green, stood heckling and waving his cane. Speaker Johnson gaveled the House to order and invited Mr. Green to sit. When he refused, the speaker had the sergeant-at-arms remove him. Republicans cheered.By Mr. Trump’s metric that no press is bad press, Democrats may count the night as a victory. However, Mr. Trump teased them often to Republicans chants of “U! S! A!” He also set them up by employing President Reagan’s innovation of saluting Americans in the House Gallery to excess.Mr. Trump called out a border patrol officer, the widow of an NYPD officer slain in the line of duty, families who lost loved ones to criminals in the country illegally, and others. Such people drew universal praise in the past and released partisan tension in the room.This night, Democrats only stared stone-faced at the fasces on either side of the House podium, ignoring that those bundles of rods symbolized a nation that’s strongest when united. By refusing to applaud anything, Democrats will allow Republicans to question Democratic claims to seek civility and respect for democracy.President Trump addresses a joint session of Congress on March 4, 2025. AP/Julia Demaree NikhinsonDemocratic scowls stayed fixed even when Mr. Trump touted popular policies like balancing the budget, lowering prices, reducing the debt; no tax on tips, overtime, or on Social Security benefits “for our great seniors.”When Mr. Trump praised America’s farmers, Democrats from agricultural states were unmoved. Had they joined the president, they might’ve given weight to criticizing the president for asking farmers to be patient during the “transition period” as his tariffs took effect.The most electrifying moment was when a 13-year-old, Devarjaye “DJ” Daniel, was made an officer of the United States Secret Service. The young black man, who had overcome brain cancer, was held aloft by his father to applause from Republicans alone. Mr. Trump announced that the terrorist who murdered 13 during the Afghanistan withdrawal had been captured and that President Zelensky had agreed to talk peace in Ukraine. “Why not join us in celebrating so many incredible wins for America?” he asked Democrats.“For the good of our nation,” Mr. Trump said, “let’s work together and let’s truly make America great again.” Yet Democrats even scowled at the mention of Mr. Trump’s secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. “With the name Kennedy,” Mr. Trump said, “you would have thought they would have been cheering.”Leaving their seats empty might have been a better stunt than providing Mr. Trump a foil. “I realize there is absolutely nothing I can say to make them happy,” Mr. Trump said, as if this was his sincere intention, “or to make them stand or smile or applaud.”The flaws in this current Democratic strategy were laid out by an advisor to President Clinton’s 1996 reelection campaign, Douglas Schoen. Last week, he told this columnist that the party’s knee-jerk contrarianism has him “worried” about their prospects for the midterms.Democrats, Mr. Schoen said, are making politics “personal.” He urged them to do “what Clinton-Gore did”: Say they “sympathize” with Republican goals but want to take different paths to get there. Contrarianism isn’t advancing anything.As an outlier, Mr. Trump is immune from the attacks and insults that have ended so many Republican careers. To slow him down, Democrats will have to try something new. That means getting out of their seats, finding a better strategy than silence, and — from time to time — maybe even cracking a smile.

Trump, Full of Smiles and Optimism, Returns to a Capitol Hill Where Democrats Are Rendered Sullen and Silent

More from the New York Sun

Taliban Frees American Academic Held More Than Year

Belgium Deploys Troops To Protect Jewish Sites as Iran-Linked Group Claims Attacks Across Europe

California Governor Debate Abruptly Cancelled After Participation Rules Exclude All Non-White Candidates

Vance Leads 2028 GOP Presidential Contenders in Polling, but Rubio’s Star Is Rising in First-in-the-Nation Primary State

Oil Market Trades Executed Minutes Before Trump Iran Announcement Net Mystery Buyers $580 Million in Profits

Delta Air Lines Suspends Special Services for Members of Congress Amid DHS Shutdown

A ‘Yentl’ Adaptation That Finally Captures the Spirit of Isaac Bashevis Singer

Epic Fury: What New Arms Are in Play