A showdown on Capitol Hill

March 4, 2025

What to expect from Trump’s speech tonight ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

March 4, 2025

Dearest Meteor readers,

Wishing you a happy Women’s History Month…or at least an informative one. This month-long holiday was established in 1987, in the thick of the Reagan era—another historical moment of backlash against feminism. May we take the missteps and thrilling victories of ‘80s feminists to heart.

In today’s newsletter, we lay out what to expect tonight during Trump’s speech to Congress (whether or not you actually tune in). Plus, a rare display of spine by moderate Democrats, and a few ways to make Mikey Madison’s support for sex workers more tangible.

Re-reading Susan Faludi,

Nona Willis Aronowitz

WHAT’S GOING ON

State of disunion: Trump will address a joint session of Congress tonight, which raises the question of how we react to these Big Presidential Moments from our not-presidential-at-all dictator. Democrats hope to turn a rote presidential custom into a flashpoint. Some of them are boycotting the event, like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Sen. Chris Murphy (CT), who called the speech a “MAGA pep rally.” Others have invited an array of citizens already hurt by Trump’s policies—including fired federal workers. Sen. Chuck Schumer (NY) invited Alissa Ellman, a disabled Army veteran who was recently fired from the Veterans Affairs Department in Buffalo. “I hope people will understand that these are actual human beings and not just numbers that we can sort of strike arbitrarily,” Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA), whose guest is a fired architect at Valley Forge National Park named Jessica Malarik Fair, told the New York Times. Some Democratic lawmakers are floating more raucous ideas, like noisemakers, empty egg cartons, pointedly timed walkouts, and protest signs in the spirit of Rep. Rashida Tlaib.

So, what to expect tonight? Trump will likely try to orchestrate a “big moment” or two; he relishes a prime-time audience and often resorts to shocking statements as a distraction tactic. Don’t take the bait. Stay focused on the substance of his policies’ havoc: his DOGE takeover, his tariffs, his border crackdown, his anti-DEI moves, his persecution of trans people, his disregard for the checks and balances that make democracy work. Or, feel free to ding Trump’s ratings by skipping the speech altogether. There’s plenty of counterprogramming to keep you in the loop, from the State of the People marathon to the “Calling BS” livestream to the blitz of progressive digital creators, from Liz Plank to Deja Foxx, slated to cover the speech from Capitol Hill.
Keep reading: We’ll see you at our International Women’s Day Meet the Moment event this Saturday, March 8, yes? Don’t miss our Banned Book reading, in which powerhouses like Emmy Rossum, Glory Edim, Stephanie Pacheco, and Jamia Wilson will read excerpts from crucial, classic books that have been banned. Last year’s readings included This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki, Sold by Patricia McCormick, and Wilson’s own Young, Gifted, and Black. Here’s the rest of the 2025 speaker lineup, which includes the announcement of the brand-new organization Future Forward Women and much more.

AND:

Finally, a little bravery from our beleaguered Senate Democrats! Every single one of them put up a united front last night when they voted down a bill banning transgender women and girls from girls’ school sports teams. This unanimous opposition was not a sure thing; activists and reporters had their eyes on swing-state senators like Jon Ossoff and John Fetterman, who recently joined Republicans in taking away undocumented immigrants’ due process rights and, it was feared, could abandon trans kids too. But even Fetterman—not exactly a progressive hero—said in a statement that these are “just schoolchildren” and that the “small handful of trans athletes in PA in a political maelstrom deserve an ally, and I am one.”

In her speech accepting the best actress award for Anora, Mikey Madison made sure to “recognize and honor the sex worker community,” adding that “I will continue to support and be an ally.” Wondering how you can support sex workers if you don’t have an Oscar statuette? Donate to organizations working to decriminalize sex work on the state level. Volunteer with or give to the many local groups that distribute mutual aid, offer legal support, and provide harm reduction supplies like condoms and Narcan. Trans sex workers are extra-vulnerable, particularly now.

A Chinese factory gave its workers an ultimatum: get hitched and have babies, or leave. No, seriously: “If you cannot get married and start a family” by September 30, an internal memo from Shandong Shuntian Chemical Group read, “the company will terminate your labor contract.” It wasn’t the first attempt by a Chinese company to dictate their employees’ love and sex lives, amid a steep decline in the country’s birth and marriage rates. (What do we think are the odds that DOGE’s next email demands the same? JD Vance, I believe this is your lane?)

BILLIONAIRE EX-WRESTLING EXECUTIVE LINDA MCMAHON. (VIA GETTY IMAGES)

Brand-new education secretary Linda McMahon, shortly after being confirmed yesterday, sent an ominous message to her employees laying out the department’s “final mission.” McMahon, who has never worked as an educator, wrote that her “vision is aligned with the President’s: to send education back to the states.” One worker called the email a “power grab” in The Guardian; another said it made them “realize that I have three bosses that are billionaires that know nothing about improving performance for America’s students.” The email comes on the heels of reports that Trump is planning to issue an executive order eliminating the Department of Education altogether, though (whether he knows it or not) he can’t actually do so without Congress’s approval.
If you’ve uttered a lot of “Oh, fucks” and “Goddamit”s in your life, especially in the last six weeks, here’s a nice update: New research shows that cursing is linked to increased tolerance to pain (both physical and social), stronger social bonds, and better memory. Pretty fucking amazing.