Early reports on the 2018 State Of The Union indicate we’ll see a kinder, gentler Trump at the podium, as he tries to use “bipartisan” language in place of his usual dog whistles (though there’s a good chance he’s pissed because he thinks he’ll need a translator). Even so, you have other viewing options tonight, like say, streaming the People’s State Of The Union in between new episodes of The Flash and Black Lightning.
Actors, artists, and activists organized their own Trump-less gathering last night in New York City, where mayor Bill DiBlasio shared a heartening message with the 500,000+ people in the crowd and watching from home. “You want to know what the state of the union is? People are fired up,” DiBlasio said. “People are awake and alive and activated all over this country. Before the age of Trump, good people talked themselves out of their own power and this age, people recognize their power.” The New York mayor also pointed to Doug Jones’ victory over accused pedophile Roy Moore in Alabama late last year as a sign of progress.
DiBlasio was joined by Mark Ruffalo, who helped put together the event, Wanda Sykes, Rosie Perez, Cynthia Nixon, Kathy Najimy, Michael Moore, and activists like Gloria Steinem and Women’s March artistic director Paola Mendoza, the latter of whom urged the resistance members to “love our undocumented brothers and sisters. We have to love our trans communities. We have to love our Indigenous people. We have to love the women who have said #TimesUp and #MeToo. We have to love our planet.”
John Leguizamo rallied attendees by reminding them of what actually makes this country great (and for everyone, not just the one-percent billionaires who are nonetheless looking for handouts via the tax code and their cabinet posts).
You can still stream the video MoveOn.org’s Facebook page. But if you’re looking for something to do during tonight’s speech, the People’s State Of The Union has some ideas for that, too.
In other SOTU-related programming, The Daily Show With Trevor Noah and Jordan Klepper’s The Opposition will have a post-show breakdown.