WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Tuesday night will deliver the first joint congressional address of his second presidency.
It’s not officially called the State of the Union, a title reserved for a president’s annual address to Congress during other years of an administration. But it is an opportunity for Trump to lay out his priorities for the year.
After Trump’s speech, Democrats will offer a message in response to the joint congressional address, which will be televised.
Who will deliver the Democratic response?
This year, Michigan Sen. Elissa Slotkin will give the Democratic response to Trump’s Congressional address. Rep. Adriano Espaillat of New York, chair of the Hispanic Caucus, will give a Spanish-language response.
Slotkin is a new Michigan senator with an extensive national security background.
A former CIA analyst, she is seen as a leading figure in the party’s next generation. She first ran for office in 2018, defeating a two-term incumbent Republican. After redistricting, she consistently won one of the nation’s most competitive House seats, earning a reputation as one of the party’s top fundraisers. In 2023, she announced a run for Michigan’s open Senate seat after Sen. Debbie Stabenow announced she would not seek a fifth term.
She is now two months into her tenure in the U.S. Senate, having narrowly defeated Republican Mike Rogers to win an open battleground seat.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., praised Slotkin as “nothing short of a rising star in our party” when announcing her selection on Thursday.
What will Slotkin discuss in the Democrat rebuttal?
Slotkin is expected to focus on economic issues in her rebuttal amid Trump’s Monday announcement that 25% tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada would begin Tuesday. The move has reignited fears of a North American trade war, which has already shown signs of driving up inflation and stalling growth.
Those close to Slotkin have suggested she plans to use the speech not just as a rebuttal to Trump, but as a chance to highlight Democrats’ broader platform. Known for her more moderate stance, Slotkin has not hesitated in the past to critique her party’s messaging when necessary.
“We didn’t do as good a job as we could have at showing what our priorities are,” Slotkin told The Associated Press after the November election. “Our priorities, in my mind, should start with people’s pocketbooks and their kids. And I think the message got muddled for a lot of people, certainly at the national level.”
Her team announced Monday that she would be joined at Trump’s speech by Marine veteran Andrew Lennox, who recently spoke out after losing his job at a Veterans Affairs hospital in Ann Arbor due to cuts implemented by the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, led by billionaire Elon Musk.