A Republican congressional lawmaker ripped a sign protesting President Trump out of the hands of one of his Democratic colleagues Tuesday in a dramatic scene that played out just moments before the commander in chief’s speech to a joint session of Congress.
“This is not normal,” read the paper sign held up by Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-NM).
Stansbury, who has represented New Mexico’s 1st Congressional District since 2021, positioned her handwritten message in the direction of TV cameras as Trump walked down the House chamber aisle to deliver his address.
The sign was only visible for a few seconds before Rep. Lance Gooden (R-Texas) noticed it and ripped the sheet of paper out of Stansbury’s hand
Trump was just feet in front of the disturbance.
It’s not clear whether the president noticed the small commotion behind him.
“This is not normal. We will resist,” Stansbury wrote on X after her demonstration.
Meanwhile, Gooden argued that “Putting the American people FIRST is normal.”
“No one will disrespect President [Trump] in front of me,” he added in an X post.
“It’s not normal for men to play in women’s sports. It’s not normal for children to have gender surgery. It’s not normal for tax dollars to fund trans mice. What today’s Democrat Party stands for is not normal, Melanie,” Gooden wrote in a separate post.
Stansbury’s sign was one of several acts of protest inside the House chamber during the president’s speech.
Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) repeatedly interrupted Trump early on during his speech – waving around his cane and shouting at the commander in chief.
Initially, Trump tried to speak over the 77-year-old congressman, but Green persisted, shouting, “You don’t have a mandate.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) eventually intervened and directed the sergeant-at-arms to “restore order” and remove Green from the chamber.
Green was eventually escorted out by the House sergeant-at-arms.
Several other Democratic lawmakers shouted at Trump at various points in his speech but none were as disruptive as Green.
Some Democrats in black “Resist” T-shirts left the proceedings early. Many were also spotted on their phones, largely ignoring Trump’s remarks.
