Moments before President Donald Trump delivered his address to Congress in the House chamber on Tuesday night, Rep. Lance Gooden (R-Texas) snatched a sign from the hands of Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.), who held up a paper that said “This is NOT normal” in protest of the current administration. And there’s a lot to take away from that moment, according to an expert.
As C-Span cameras captured Trump entering the House chamber, Stansbury could be seen standing to his left holding up the sign in silent protest. The president appeared to notice the sign as he made his way through the crowd, right before he stopped to greet Gooden.
While speaking with Gooden, the president made a gesture with his thumb pointing behind him, but it’s unclear what he said to Gooden during that time. As the president continued walking, Gooden continued to greet others before he abruptly leaned over, ripped the paper out of Stansbury’s hands and tossed it in the air. He then continued cheering on Trump as normal. (Watch a clip capturing the incident above.)
The moment, reported by HuffPost’s Arthur Delaney, did not sit well with many online. People on X, formerly Twitter, called Gooden’s actions aggressive, and said his response was hypocritical given the Republican Party’s messaging on calling for freedom of speech. Not to mention Republicans have demonstrated various forms of protests during past State of the Union addresses, like Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) and Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), who have notoriously heckled former President Joe Biden during his speeches. In 2023, Greene yelled “liar” at Biden at the top of her lungs in the House chamber.
People on X also questioned whether Gooden would’ve snatched the paper if it was a man holding it. “I bet you he wouldn’t have been tough enough to do it to a man,” one X user wrote.
Gooden stands by his actions toward Stansbury. He retweeted a video clip of the moment on X later that night, writing: “Putting the American people FIRST is normal. No one will disrespect President [Trump] in front of me.”
Tabitha Bonilla, an associate professor of Political Science and Human Development and Social Policy at Northwestern University, told HuffPost that she believes the moment revealed quite a lot about the Republican Party’s current views on free speech.
“Gooden’s conduct seems to underline the stance the Republican party is currently taking: their interpretation of free speech is for them and their values, but not for anyone who appears to disagree with them or point out problems with their approach to government,” she said.
She continued, “By pulling away her sign (possibly at that moment because the camera picked it up next to the president), Gooden seems to be sending a message that Stansbury is not allowed to comment or be heard.”
Here’s what else Bonilla, who studies political behavior and communication, took away from the moment:
Gooden’s actions toward Stansbury seemed to be a “show of power.”
“It felt more similar to what we see in more contested protests than what we see on the floor of Congress,” Bonilla said. “It also felt like a surprising show of power between a taller man ripping the sign from a woman, who stands there silently, and not engaging with the men around her.”
“I was surprised by it,” she added.
Stansbury was among several Democrats who demonstrated various forms of protest on Tuesday night. Many Democratic women in Congress wore pink to signify a protest against Trump’s policies impacting women and families. Other Democrats held up matching black signs throughout Trump’s speech that said phrases like, “Save Medicaid” or “False.”
Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) was escorted from the chamber after he rose from his seat and yelled as Trump spoke: “You have no mandate to cut Medicaid.”
Republicans in the chamber responded by yelling at Green to sit down and started chanting “USA, USA, USA!”
The right to free speech and protest is embedded in the Constitution via the First Amendment.
“It is important to the functioning of our government, our political system, and even our education system,” Bonilla said about free speech and peaceful protest.
She noted that there are, however, “important limitations on free speech.”
As Bonilla pointed out, free speech is “only guaranteed in public spaces.” And examples of speech that’s not protected by the First Amendment include speech that constitutes “a true threat” or incites imminent unlawful action, among other examples.
Bonilla said she would argue that if members of a party can wear “hats and shirts with messages,” then “Stansbury should be able to hold a sign, and members of the opposite party should not be allowed to police them.” (Greene, who wore a MAGA hat to Biden’s State of the Union last year, wore a red cap on Tuesday night that read: “Trump Was Right About Everything.”)
“In fact, I would argue that holding a small sign without comment is less disruptive than ‘boos’ or cheers that we tend to see from Members of Congress,” Bonilla added.
Gooden boasting about protecting Trump speaks to a bigger issue about loyalty.
Bonilla said that she believes unwavering loyalty to Trump from Republican members of Congress — and not loyalty to the country and the constitution — will hurt Republican lawmakers in the future, considering Trump has sought to expand executive power, i.e., cutting spending programs approved by Congress.
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And as it relates to Stansbury’s silent protest, Bonilla emphasized that “Dissent is a critical feature of democracy.”
“I am concerned that many Republican leaders, including the president, are misinterpreting dissent and criticism as disrespectful, when really, it’s one of the most critical features of liberal thought and free speech,” she added.