Rep. Janelle Bynum (D-OR) accused President Donald Trump of using “thinly veiled racist language” when he asked members of Congress to stand if they agreed that the government’s first duty is to protect American citizens over illegal aliens.
The moment came during Trump’s first State of the Union address of his second term on Tuesday evening. Trump turned to the assembled lawmakers and posed what seemed like a straightforward question: “Stand up if you agree with this statement: The first duty of American government is to protect American citizens, not illegal aliens.”
Every Republican in the chamber stood. Not a single Democrat did. Most didn’t clap, either.
Footage of the split reaction went viral within minutes. The optics were brutal for Democrats: an entire party, seated and silent, while the other side of the aisle affirmed that citizens come first.
Bynum was asked about the moment by a reporter after the address.
“I think you can agree with that ‘what,’ like standing up for American citizens, but I disagree with the ‘how,'” Bynum said. “And so it’s always about how do we bring our country together but not stand on the backs of others.”
She continued: “There’s thinly veiled racist language, anti-immigrant language in what he was asking and that was uncomfortable.”
Bynum did not specify what portion of the statement she considered racist. The question Trump posed made no reference to race. It referenced American citizens and illegal aliens, two legal categories that span every ethnicity and national origin.
The Oregon Democrat’s response has drawn sharp criticism from Republican lawmakers and commentators who argue it reveals the party’s priorities. If a simple declaration that government should serve its own citizens first qualifies as racism, critics say, the word has lost all meaning.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, speaking to reporters after the address, called the Democrats’ refusal to stand “telling.”
“The American people saw exactly where each party stands,” Johnson said. “One party got up for American citizens. The other one didn’t. That’s all you need to know.”
Bynum, who represents Oregon’s 5th Congressional District, flipped the seat from Republican to Democrat in 2024. The district leans slightly left but includes rural and suburban areas where immigration enforcement polls well.
