Sen. Elissa Slotkin to Give Democrats’ Response to Trump’s Address to Congress

Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-N.Y.) will deliver the Democratic response in Spanish.

Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) campaigns with Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) at an Evening for Patriotism and Bipartisanship event in East Lansing, Mich., on Nov. 1, 2022. Bill Pugliano/Getty Images

Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) will give the Democrats’ response to President Donald Trump’s March 4 address to a joint session of Congress.

“BIG: I’m announcing @SenatorSlotkin will deliver our Democratic response to Trump’s Joint Address. Nothing short of a rising star in our party—she’s dedicated her life to our country. She will lay out the fight to tackle the deep challenges we face and chart a path forward,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) wrote in a post on social media platform X on Feb. 27.

“I’m looking forward to speaking directly to the American people next week,” Slotkin wrote on X. “The public expects leaders to level with them on what’s actually happening in our country.”

“From our economic security to our national security, we’ve got to chart a way forward that improves people’s lives in the country we all love,” she said. “I look forward to laying that out.”

A first-year senator, Slotkin was elected in 2024 after serving in the House for two terms, representing Michigan’s Eighth and Seventh congressional districts. She narrowly defeated former Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Mich.) in the race to succeed Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.).

Before being elected to the House, the former career CIA official served as assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs in the Obama administration.

Slotkin is known for promoting bipartisanship.

“Bipartisanship is deeply unsexy to people. It’s boring. It’s not cliquey,” she said at a December 2024 event hosted by Punchbowl News in Washington.

“It is very difficult to think about how to make actual functioning government sexy again—if it ever was—and it’s a conundrum for those of us, I think, in the middle.”

Last year, The Lugar Center ranked Slotkin the 14th most bipartisan member of Congress.

Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-N.Y.) will deliver a Spanish-language Democratic response to Trump’s speech.

The four-term congressman “embodies the very essence of the American dream, and he’s fought to keep that same promise alive for millions of American families,” Schumer wrote on X.

In a Jan. 25 letter inviting Trump to address Congress, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) wrote: “America’s Golden Age has begun. Thanks to your strong leadership and bold action in the first days of your presidency, the United States is already experiencing a resurgence of patriotism, unity, and hope for the future.”

The GOP is looking to pass legislation to enact Trump’s agenda on the border, taxes, and energy. The House and Senate have passed separate budget resolutions but must pass an identical one to unlock the reconciliation process, which allows legislation related to taxing, spending, and the national debt to pass both houses with only a simple majority threshold and avoid the 60-vote requirement to overcome a filibuster.