Scoop: Summer Lee to deliver the left's SOTU response
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Rep. Summer Lee attends an Oversight Committee markup on Jan. 21. Photo: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images
Rep. Summer Lee (D-Pa.) has been tapped to give the progressive Working Families Party's response to President Trump's State of the Union this year, Axios has learned.
Why it matters: The spot is given to lawmakers seen as rising stars on the left. Past speakers include Reps. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) and Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.).
- Lee "is the kind of leader this moment demands," Working Families Party National Director Maurice Mitchell said in a statement first shared with Axios.
- "She's fearless, rooted in working-class communities, and unafraid to take on both MAGA extremism and corporate power."
What they're saying: Lee, a former state legislator first elected to her Pittsburgh-based seat in 2022, said in a statement she will "elevate the voices of the people ... who are angry, scared, and fed up with an administration that's done nothing to help and a lot to hurt everyday people."
- "And I'm going to say what too many politicians won't: the system is rigged, the obscenely wealthy are profiting from it, and working people deserve more than scraps," she added.
- "Now more than ever, we need a political home for people who are ready to fight back against Trump's corruption and cruelty, and the corporate politics that made him possible."
Zoom out: Look for contrast between Lee's speech and the main Democratic response, which will be given by Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger.
- Spanberger, a prominent member of the Democratic Party's moderate wing, said in a statement that Americans are "are contending with rising costs, chaos in their communities, and a real fear of what each day might bring."
- "Next week, I look forward to laying out what these Americans expect and deserve — leaders who are working hard to deliver for them," she said.
Between the lines: The two speeches come as the left and center are battling it out for primacy in the Democratic Party ahead of the 2026 midterms and the 2028 presidential election.
- Progressive and establishment Democratic candidates are duking it out in open primaries across the country, with some progressive insurgents even trying to unseat Democratic incumbents.
- And progressives are eager to finally notch a presidential nomination ahead of what will surely be a crowded and messy primary.
What to watch: The Lee and Spanberger speeches will follow a slew of counter-programming Democrats are planning during Trump's address.
- House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) has urged his members to either attend silently or boycott the speech, rather than protest from inside the chamber.
- Progressive groups are staging at least two protest events that will feature Democratic members of Congress: The "People's State of the Union" and the "State of the Swamp."
- But some Democrats still want to make their anti-Trump views known from inside the chamber, as Axios reported last week.
Go deeper: You can watch Lee's address here.
