Trump to Face Workers He Fired as Democrats Plan Speech Protest

Democrats will confront President Donald Trump tonight by bringing a slate of guests he fired to the first joint address to Congress of his second term.

Laid-off federal workers will join multiple House and Senate Democrats in the House chamber as the party seeks to highlight the human cost of Trump’s first weeks back in the White House. The guests lost their jobs after cuts from the Department of Government Efficiency effort spearheaded by multibillionaire Elon Musk.

The guests they’re bringing — including fired agency workers, constituents who lost federal funding, and Medicaid recipients — showcase what Democrats see as their strongest argument to win back congressional seats in 2026.

“Elon Musk’s arbitrary and capricious approach” to cost-cutting “is undermining many essential functions and leading to a major brain drain,” New Democrat Coalition Chairman Brad Schneider (D-Ill.), said in announcing he’ll bring Army veteran Adam Mulvey to the address. Mulvey, who worked for almost a year as a federal health care center employee, was fired last month.

Swing-district Democrat and freshman Rep. Janelle Bynum’s (D-Ore.) guest is Liz Crandall, a Forest Service ranger, who was also let go. Both Mulvey and Crandall were probationary workers who lacked job protections.

Even lawmakers from safe Democratic states and districts invited ousted federal workers. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), a leader of the progressive wing of the party, will bring Doug Kowalewski, who was fired from the National Science Foundation after more than three years. Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), a member of a group of outspoken liberal female lawmakers dubbed the Squad, will bring Chris Wicker, an Air Force veteran who lost his job.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) will bring two Medicaid recipients and a beneficiary of National Institutes of Health funding to the address. The focus on Medicaid underscores Democrats’ opposition to the House-passed budget that calls for $880 billion in cuts to mandatory spending under the Energy and Commerce Committee over the next decade.

Republicans accuse Democrats of fear-mongering with their Medicaid messaging. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has pointed to eliminating fraud in the system as a way to cut costs without reducing eligible Americans’ benefits.

Schumer will also bring fired federal workers who worked with farmers and veterans. Alissa Ellman, who lost her job at the Buffalo VA, is a disabled Army veteran who got cancer associated with toxic burn pit exposure during service. Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) is bringing Jason King, a disabled veteran who was fired by the Federal Aviation Administration.

Democrats learned about their fired constituents through a variety of ways, including the town halls and the highest volume of calls their offices have received in years. Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), who leads the Homeland Security Committee, also launched this week an online form for employees fired by the Homeland Security Department to share their information.

The party has wrestled with how to react to Trump, a former reality television star who excels at using such large events for publicity purposes. Instead of bringing fired federal workers and aid beneficiaries, some Democrats are boycotting the address. Sens. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), and Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.) will host a live chat during Trump’s speech, hosted by progressive group MoveOn.

Trump’s joint address “is going to be a farce,” Murphy said on CNN this weekend. “I think it’s going to be a MAGA pep rally.”

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) wrote in a letter to Democrats Monday that the decision of whether to attend Trump’s address is a “personal one,” though the party’s top brass will attend “to make clear to the nation that there is a strong opposition party ready.”

Jeffries said all House Democrats should engage with the press Tuesday, including outlets “beyond the traditional Democratic response.” House Democrats will also be on the Capitol steps Wednesday morning “for an event featuring the voices of the American people.”