Why I'm Attending Trump's Sham State of the Union

Showing up isn’t an endorsement. It’s a statement: the Constitution still matters.

I’m attending President Donald Trump’s State of the Union for one reason: duty.

As a 25-year Army veteran, I swore an oath to the Constitution — not to a political party, and certainly not to a president. That oath doesn’t disappear when a speech is filled with distortions or disconnected from the reality Americans are living every day. It requires me to hold this administration accountable.

And it’s why I’m bringing my brother, Alexander Vindman, as my guest.

The last time America saw my brother Alex, he was sworn in—telling the truth about a president who broke his oath. It wasn’t partisan. It was patriotic. At a time when democratic norms and accountability are under pressure, his presence is a reminder that no one is above the law — and that constitutional duty is an American value.

I expect we’ll hear what we always hear from Trump: chaos, cruelty, and corruption.

You won’t hear real solutions on costs.

You won’t hear a serious plan to lower costs for working families.

You won’t hear anything that reflects what Americans are actually feeling in their daily lives. I hear from families in Virginia struggling with rising utility bills. Alex hears it from Americans in Florida facing skyrocketing home insurance costs. Yet too many Republicans in Washington are rubber-stamping this president’s agenda while focusing on enriching themselves — from shady foreign business entanglements to well-timed stock trades that raise serious questions about insider dealing.

Washington cannot be a rubber stamp for high prices and corruption.

My brother and I are both retired Army officers who served in Iraq. We’ve stood up to this kind of corruption before. By attending, we’re reminding the president — and the country — that millions of Americans are demanding change.

Showing up isn’t an endorsement. It’s a statement: the Constitution still matters.

Accountability still matters.

And I will continue to put country over party, every single time.