Al Green Censure

It’s hard to succeed in big things if you can’t succeed in the small ones. And last week the United States Congress proved that point.

The President of the United States of America addressed a joint session of Congress on Tuesday. Like him or not, agree with him or not, he is the office. And the office was addressing Congress.

Representative Al Green, Democrat of Texas, interrupted the speech. He stood, waved his walking stick at the President, and yelled his thoughts on potential cuts to Medicaid. When it became clear this was going to be a sustained disruption, Speaker Mike Johnson did the right thing. He admonished Green. He asked Green to sit down, giving him the chance to avoid escalation. And when Green chose not to comply, Johnson properly had him removed from the chamber. Johnson showed no pleasure in the move, unlike many other Republicans in the chamber. Our Vice President’s reactions and facial expressions made him look ever the weasel, and some congressional Republicans acted more like over-served hockey fans than leaders, singing “Na na na na, hey hey, goodbye.”

I’m not naive to the frustration this particular President can illicit. I’m not naive to the fact that much of what the President said that night would have been more at home shoveled out of a wheelbarrow instead of read off a teleprompter. But the office was addressing a co-equal branch of government. And the office is deserving of every respect that can be shown it. By all means, if one disagrees with him, find a microphone after the speech. After.

Now to be clear, decorum left that building long ago and leadership of the chamber enforces the rules not by wearing a veil of blindness but rather with a weather eye as to whether there is a (D) or an (R) after the offender’s name. In 2009, Congressman Joe Wilson, Republican from South Carolina, shouted “You lie!” at President Barack Obama. Wilson apologized that very night, yet a Democrat-led Congress still passed a resolution of disapproval a few days later. President Biden endured almost constant heckling during his 2024 State of the Union, and at one point Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, Republican from Georgia, engaged in a sustained verbal sparring match with him. Yet, Speaker Johnson let that go without ever rising to remind members that they are “directed to uphold and maintain decorum in the House.” And a Republican-led House did not censure her. Now both sides use visual aids in the chamber, from MAGA hats to buttons to handheld signs to printed t-shirts. It’s like they’re at a football game instead of in the hallowed halls of government.

Even when members weren’t being inappropriate Tuesday night, they still got it wrong. Could Democrats not find one thing in the President’s remarks for which to clap? And as for Republicans, the last time I saw that many people risking tennis elbow from overzealous, fawning applause it was video of North Koreans clapping for Kim Jong Un. President Trump has taken executive overreach to new heights at the expense of the role of the Legislature, so perhaps a more tempered response from Republican legislators might be prudent.

This brings us to the vote to censure Green. He said he was ready to accept any punishment that came his way. The language of the censure was factual and innocuous. And Democrats have positioned themselves in the Trump era as the party protecting norms of behavior and our institutions. Surely, then, the vote would be unanimous for censure. Except it wasn’t. It was 224-198 along party lines. Ten Democrats, to their credit, did find their way to a yes vote. But our New Hampshire representatives, Chris Pappas and Maggie Goodlander voted that yelling and waving a walking stick at the office of the Presidency is okay.

A unanimous vote would have said decorum matters. It would have said this is behavior we don’t need to see again regardless of which party is at the podium. It would have said two wrongs don’t make a right. And it would have been a political master class on the part of the Democrats, realizing their base wouldn’t hold it against them and the rest of us might have been pleasantly surprised. It would have said it’s time to get back to work on issues that affect the daily lives of Americans. It would have said we can succeed in the small things. Instead, 198 representatives gave the behavior a pass and dozens of them stood in the well with Green to sing “We Shall Overcome.” So much for accepting the punishment.

In 2026, when we Granite Staters are inundated with ads from Representatives Pappas and Goodlander touting their bipartisanship, I hope we will remember votes like this one that placed party loyalty over both country and propriety.