From "I’ll Pass" to "You Can’t Intimidate Me": AZ lawmakers on Trump’s State of the Union

As President Donald Trump prepares to deliver the State of the Union on Feb. 24, Arizona’s political class has furnished a study in contrasts — from blunt boycotts to vows of defiance — underscoring how sharply the address has become a focal point for protest and performance.

Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) was one of the most unequivocal in saying he will not attend. “This administration continues to disregard the rule of law and the Constitution while failing to lower costs for American families. I have more productive ways to spend two hours than listening to more lies. I’ll pass,” Gallego said.

By contrast, Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) tells me he will be in the chamber, framing his attendance as resistance to personal attacks. “Two weeks ago, Donald Trump tried to have me arrested for something I said that he didn’t like, so I’m going to be in that room because he can’t intimidate me or stop me from doing my job—standing up for Arizona and the Constitution,” Kelly said.

Rep. Juan Ciscomani (R-Ariz.), whose congressional district covers southeastern Arizona, including parts of Pima, Pinal, Cochise, and Graham counties, and all of Greenlee County, framed his response to the State of the Union as both a recognition of the event’s importance and an opportunity to spotlight his district, announcing that he’ll attend the address with Ben Menges of Graham County as his guest. Menges is an Arizona rancher involved in the Arizona agriculture community.

In this video posted on his x profile (and also below), Ciscomani described the annual address as a unique chance for members to hear the president’s vision and emphasized the tradition of bringing constituents from across the district. He praised Menges as a committed advocate who regularly represents his community in D.C., a devoted family man with two young children, and said he expects Ben to represent Graham County well at the State of the Union on Tuesday.

Rep. Adelita Grijalva (D-Ariz.), whose congressional district is anchored in Pima County and includes parts of Cochise, Maricopa, Pinal, Santa Cruz, and Yuma counties, told KGUN 9 on Wednesday she will skip the address, saying she intends to use the evening to amplify the voices of Arizonans she says have been hurt by the administration’s immigration and enforcement policies. Grijalva, a first-term congresswoman from Tucson, told us she would instead give her SOTU passes to Rep. Ilhan Omar so Omar could bring the family of Renee Good, the Minneapolis woman fatally shot by a federal immigration agent in January.

VIDEO: Watch Grijalva below speak with KGUN 9 on Wednesday:

The office of Rep. Yassamin Ansari (D-Ariz.), whose congressional district is centered in Maricopa County that covers parts of Phoenix, including South Phoenix, Maryvale, Laveen, and sections of Glendale, confirmed in a release she will skip the address and instead join the progressive-organized “People’s State of the Union” rally on the National Mall, part of a coordinated effort by MoveOn and MeidasTouch to highlight stories from people the organizers say have been harmed by the administration’s policies.

National Democratic leaders have left attendance decisions to individual lawmakers; House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries urged members to choose between attending with “silent defiance” or participating in alternate programming. The Arizona lawmakers joining the boycott said their absence is meant to deny the president an unchallenged platform and to center the voices of people directly affected by immigration enforcement and other policies.

The office of Governor Katie Hobbs (D-Ariz.) has not issued a public statement committing to attend or to boycott the address. We have reached out to her office for comment and will update here should we receive a reply.

The differing choices from Arizona’s leaders mirror a broader debate about how to handle the president’s nationally televised address: attend and use the chamber to register visible or quiet protest, or skip the speech entirely and join outside rallies intended to spotlight stories critics say the administration ignores. Progressive organizers have scheduled counterprogramming on the National Mall and in other venues timed to the speech, and several Arizona lawmakers who are skipping the address are expected to participate or offer public support.

Republicans and many other members of Congress are expected to attend the State of the Union. For Arizona’s delegation, the night will be as much about the optics of presence or absence as about the substance of the president’s remarks — with lawmakers trading public discipline and confrontation in a high-profile moment that party operatives say could shape messaging in the months ahead.