The removal of Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) from Trump's speech to Congress last night was one of the more notable moments in the evening. Green, cane in hand, had stood up repeatedly to interrupt Trump while Trump was outlining his election win and the "mandate" it gave him. Watch:

The removal of Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) from Trump's speech to Congress last night was one of the more notable moments in the evening. Green, cane in hand, had stood up repeatedly to interrupt Trump while Trump was outlining his election win and the "mandate" it gave him. Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvBxq01SdvY

Loud protests by opposition party members have become increasingly common during presidential addresses. The first time I remember seeing it was during George W. Bush's 2005 state of the union address when Democrats booed his Social Security privatization plan.

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Loud protests by opposition party members have become increasingly common during presidential addresses. The first time I remember seeing it was during George W. Bush's 2005 state of the union address when Democrats booed his Social Security privatization plan. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBxmEGG71PM

And of course, there was then-Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) yelling "you lie" in 2009 when Obama said the ACA would not cover undocumented immigrants, and various Lauren Boebert/Majorie Taylor Greene interruptions during the Biden years.

And of course, there was then-Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) yelling "you lie" in 2009 when Obama said the ACA would not cover undocumented immigrants, and various Lauren Boebert/Majorie Taylor Greene interruptions during the Biden years. https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2024/03/07/bad-behavior-state-of-the-union-00145473

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xI9uGg1q8WY

So how should we interpret the rise in these incidents?

In terms of causes, higher partisan polarization, narrower audience targeting, and the demands of virality in the digital age are key. ...

That said, judged on their own partisan terms, some of these moments are more effective at landing a punch, or raising an issue's salience, than others.

Green's interruption was particularly useless because: the moment in Trump's speech did not make his message self-explanatory; no one heard what he said, since Republicans drowned him out; and because Speaker Johnson had him removed so quickly. 

Here's his explanation afterward: "The president said he had a mandate. And I was making it clear to the president that he has no mandate to cut Medicaid."

That said, judged on their own partisan terms, some of these moments are more effective at landing a punch, or raising an issue's salience, than others.

Green's interruption was particularly useless because: the moment in Trump's speech did not make his message self-explanatory; no one heard what he said, since Republicans drowned him out; and because Speaker Johnson had him removed so quickly. 

Here's his explanation afterward: "The president said he had a mandate. And I was making it clear to the president that he has no mandate to cut Medicaid." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2e9bS6VnNpw

Contrast this Marjorie Taylor Greene's interruption of Biden's state of the union in 2024 where she could be heard asking "what about Laken Riley," a young woman murdered by an undocumented immigrant.

Rather than move to throw her out, Biden engaged MTG by raising a pin with Riley's face on it, while simultaneously noting native-born Americans commit more crimes.

Contrast this Marjorie Taylor Greene's interruption of Biden's state of the union in 2024 where she could be heard asking "what about Laken Riley," a young woman murdered by an undocumented immigrant.

Rather than move to throw her out, Biden engaged MTG by raising a pin with Riley's face on it, while simultaneously noting native-born Americans commit more crimes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xI9uGg1q8WY

So Marjorie Taylor Greene was more politically effective than Al Green, though it depended in part on a president's decision to engage rather than shut out. It was arguably an example of Biden's weak approach and how the issue of uncontrolled immigration had put him in a no-win situation.

... How should people concerned about polarization feel about all this?

Part of me thinks that if Congress did away with some of its superficial commitment to collegiality and allowed the kind of raucousness that is prevalent in, say, the UK's House of Commons, we might actually have more room to address root causes. 

I'm not so sure though, because when these moments go viral among an opposition party's base it can become it's own incentive to engage in self-cocooning, partisan red-meat throwing, rather than substantive policy work or strategizing about how to broaden coalitions.