Democrats are warning each other not to 'do anything stupid' during President Trump's speech


Democrats attending President Trump's address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night are being told not to create a "you lie" moment, The Washington Examiner reports.
"Don't do anything stupid," former President Barack Obama's chief speechwriter, Cody Keenan, warned Monday night at Georgetown University. "Don't boo. Don't hold up signs. Don't wave things. Don't heckle. Don't give the president an opportunity to become sympathetic." Keenan suggested instead polite applause, or otherwise staying quiet.
During Obama's joint address in 2009, South Carolina Rep. Joe Wilson (R) interrupted Obama's statement about undocumented immigrants with a shout of "you lie." The moment "helped to make [Obama] a sympathetic figure," The Washington Examiner writes.
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A subtler protest is being planned instead: The Hill reports that women in the House Democratic Caucus plan to wear white to Trump's address, a tip of the hat to the women's suffrage movement:
"We wear white to unite against any attempts by the Trump administration to roll back the incredible progress women have made in the last century, and we will continue to support the advancement of all women. We will not go back," said Rep. Lois Frankel (D-Fla.).
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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
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