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De Niro heads up all-star lineup of Dems, leftist cranks for Trump SOTU rebuttal

February 19, 2026 | | Print Article

Democrats and their allies are pulling out all the stops for the annual State of the Union address with protests and propaganda aplenty, including deploying foul-mouthed Hollywood legend Robert De Niro to rebut President Donald J. Trump’s message to America.

The Trump-hating octogenarian human f-bomb machine is among those who will be featured at the “State of the Swamp” event counterprogramming Trump’s address, which will be delivered on Tuesday, February 24, before a joint session of Congress, a high-stakes speech in a critical election year.

Sponsored by the group Defiance.org, the “State of the Swamp” will trot out dozens of speakers at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. to assail Trump and his policies, a veritable all-star collection of leftist cranks, including sitting Democrat members of Congress, activists, media personalities, and celebrities.

In addition to De Niro, Tinseltown will be represented by actor Mark Ruffalo, best known for his role as the Incredible Hulk in the Marvel “Avengers” movie franchise.

Elected lawmakers joining De Niro and Ruffalo for the four-hour tantrum will be “Seditious Six” member Jason Crow (D-CO), Eric Swalwell (D-CA), Seth Moulton (D-MA), Eugene Vindman (D-VA), and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR), according to the organization’s website.

Also billed to appear are Lincoln Project luminaries Steve Schmidt and George Conway, failed Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, former congressman Joe Walsh, Never Trump “conservative” radio personality Charlie Sykes, lawfare lizard Norm Eisen, Muslim media personalities Mehdi Hasan and Wajahat Ali, and disgraced former CNN pest Jim Acosta, along with “more surprise guests,” the website teases.

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The anti-Trump hatefest will be live-streamed on Defiance.org, YouTube, and Substack.

Another counterprogramming event presented by the left-wing Meidas Touch and MoveOn.org will feature nearly a dozen more Democrat lawmakers, including Sens. Ed Markey (D-MA), Chris Murphy (D-CT), and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), as well as Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), with the event being hosted by former MSNBC hosts Katie Phang and virulent anti-white racist Joy Reid.

The event is being billed as “The People’s State of the Union” and will take place on the National Mall during Trump’s speech.

There will also likely be more performative antics from Democrat lawmakers who attend the SOTU in person, but others are just going to protest by boycotting the speech entirely.

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“After watching President Trump run roughshod over the Constitution, display utter disregard for Congress, and openly engage in corruption as he and his family use the office to enrich themselves and tarnish this country that I love, I will not give him the dignity of having my presence at the State of the Union,” Rep. Ami Bera (D-CA) said in a statement.

“Since his return to office, @POTUS has not stopped working for the American people and delivering on his promises. The best is yet to come,” Speaker of the House Mike Johnson said in a post to X last month, announcing that he has formally invited Trump to speak.

Chris Donaldson
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