The Democratic Party may have a long history, but its recent behavior raises serious questions about its credibility. From its antics during Trump’s speech to Congress to its over-the-top reaction to Rep. Al Green’s censure, the party increasingly appears more focused on performative outrage than responsible governance.
Democrats who attended Trump’s speech showed up in matching outfits, wielding ridiculous black paddles with slogans and, unsurprisingly, interrupted the speech with outbursts. But Rep. Al Green took the spectacle even further, waving his cane and shouting like an unhinged protester at a rally. After multiple warnings, the Sergeant at Arms was forced to remove him from the chamber—a national embarrassment Green later boasted was “worth it.”
When it came time to censure Green for his childish behavior, only 10 Democrats could muster the basic decency to support the resolution. The rest? They decided to turn the House chamber into an amateur theater production, breaking into a tone-deaf rendition of "We Shall Overcome" while Speaker Johnson attempted to read the censure resolution. The Squad's usual suspects—Rashida Tlaib and Ayanna Pressley—added to the chaos by screaming at their Republican colleagues like they were filming a reality TV show.
As legal expert Jonathan Turley brilliantly observed on X, this was a major low point for the Democrats.
“The sound you heard was the Democratic party hitting rock bottom in this disgraceful display,” he said in a thread on X. “Faced with the first member to be expelled during a joint session address, the Democrats followed a censure over his disruption by disrupting the business of the House. Johnson showed admirable restraint and put the house into recess.”
Related: The House Votes to Censure Al Green, and Democrats Went Nuts
Turley continued, “With this vote and the subsequent protest in the well, the party has cut itself adrift from any principle of decorum or civility. It turns out that only 8 [sic] Democrats voted for the motion. Two voted present. Green said he would do it again and the rest of the party supported him.”
Turley concluded that this pathetic display reduced Democrats "from federal legislators to the level of graffiti artists." He is absolutely correct. The party has completely surrendered to pure, performative outrage, abandoning any pretense of being serious lawmakers.
This isn't about political disagreements anymore. It's about basic professional conduct. When you can't even maintain elementary decorum during a Joint Address to Congress or a censure vote, you've forfeited your right to be taken seriously as a political party. The Democrats have transformed the House floor into their personal protest space, where tantrums are celebrated and dignity is optional.
This is the same party that pretends to care about the sanctity of our institutions.
The writing's on the wall: Today's Democratic Party is nothing but a radical organization that treats Congress like a progressive activism summer camp. They'd rather scream, sing, and disrupt than actually legislate. This isn't your grandfather's Democratic Party—it's not even recognizable as a serious political institution anymore.
The American people deserve better than this embarrassing spectacle from what was once a respectable political party. But until Democrats decide to grow up and start acting like the federal legislators they're supposed to be, they'll remain exactly what they've become—a joke that stopped being funny a long time ago.
