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In response to Democrats, Spanberger accuses Trump of increasing costs and chaos

Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger gives a Democratic response to President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address in Williamsburg, Feb. 24, 2026. (Pool photo by Erin Schaff/The New York Times)

Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger, just weeks after being sworn in as the Commonwealth’s 75th governor, delivered a fierce rebuttal from Democrats Tuesday night to President Donald Trump’s 107-minute State of the Union address, accusing him of driving up the costs of housing, health care, energy and groceries, sowing chaos in American communities and worsening instability abroad — all while enriching himself and his allies.

Speaking in historic Colonial Williamsburg, Spanberger asked viewers across the country three questions in her 12-minute speech.

“Is the president working to make life more accessible for you and your family? Is the president working to keep Americans safe – both at home and abroad? Is the president working for you? We all know the answer is no,” she said.

Democrats in Congress announced on Thursday that Spanberger, 46, will provide the party’s answer by elevating Virginia’s first woman governor to the national stage ahead of the midterm elections.

She is Virginia’s first Democratic governor since then-Gov. Tim Kaine in 2006. The following year, U.S. Senator Jim Webb provided a Democratic response to President George W. Bush’s speech. In 2010, Republican Gov. Bob McDonnell provided a GOP response to President Barack Obama’s State of the Union statement.

Trump touts strength; Spanberger cites rising costs

The White House criticized Spanberger’s ouster in a prepared statement released Tuesday afternoon.

“Spanberger, like the rest of the radical left lunatics in her party, is completely opposed to President Trump’s agenda to cut costs, restore production and secure our borders – instead she supports a return to the Biden-era carnage that she ‘proudly’ supported,” the statement said.

asset, speaking at a joint session of Congress he declared the nation “strong” for the second time since taking office last year, highlighting job growth, rising incomes and a booming stock market even as many voters continue to express economic anxiety.

He defended his administration’s record on border security and immigration, called for tighter voting rules and restrictions on absentee ballots, and highlighted efforts to reduce federal spending.

The president also introduced what he described as a “payer protection plan” to address rising electricity costs associated with data centers.

However, Spanberger said the president’s economic message did not reflect what she heard from Virginians during her campaign.

“When I campaigned for governor last year, I visited every corner of Virginia and everywhere I heard the same urgent concern: the costs are too high,” she said. “In housing, health care, energy and child care. I know the same conversations are happening across the country.”

She argued that Trump’s trade policies increased household spending.

“Because since this president took office last year, his reckless trade policies have forced American families to pay more than $1,700 in tariff costs per person,” she said. “Small businesses suffered. Farmers suffered, some lost entire markets. Ordinary Americans are paying the price.”

She added that although the Supreme Court struck down those tariffs a few days ago, “the damage to us, the American people, has already been done.”

She said Republicans in Congress remain unwilling to assert their constitutional authority to stop the president. “They make your life harder. They make your life more expensive. They even make it harder to go to the doctor.”

Spanberger pointed to what she called the consequences of the reconciliation bill passed by Congress last year.

“Virginia’s rural health clinics are already closing their doors thanks to the so-called ‘One Big Beautiful Act’ championed by the president and Republicans in Congress,” she said.

“And tonight the president celebrated this law – one that threatens rural hospitals, deprives millions of Americans of health care, and increases energy and housing costs. All while cutting food programs for hungry children.”

She then moved on to what she described as corruption at the highest levels of government.

“He is enriching himself, his family, his friends. The scale of corruption is unprecedented,” Spanberger said, citing “the cover-up of the Epstein files,” “crypto fraud,” “picking up foreign princes in exchange for planes and billionaires in ballrooms,” and “putting his name and face on buildings all over our nation’s capital.”

“This is not what our founders envisioned,” she said.

The governor says Trump’s policies threaten safety

Drawing on her past as a former federal law enforcement officer and CIA case officer, Spanberger argued that the Trump administration’s actions made Americans less safe and sound.

“I began my career following in my father’s footsteps as a federal agent handling money laundering and drug cases. I worked hand-in-hand with local and state police to keep our communities safe and uphold and enforce the law,” she said.

“Yet our president sent poorly trained federal agents into our cities, where they arrested and detained American citizens and people aspiring to be Americans — and they did so without a warrant,” she said.

Spanberger added that federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents “took nursing mothers away from their babies, sent the children – a little boy wearing a blue bunny – to remote detention centers, and killed American citizens on our streets. And they did it all with their faces masked from accountability.”

On foreign policy, the governor said Trump is weakening America’s position in the world.

“As the president talked tonight about his alleged successes, he continues to cede economic power and technological strength to China, kowtow to the Russian dictator and plan for war with Iran,” she said.

“Here’s the truth: Over the past year, through DOGE, mass layoffs, and the appointment of completely unserious people to the most senior positions in our country, our president has jeopardized the United States’ long and rich history of being a force for good.”

In choosing colonial Williamsburg as her backdrop, Spanberger alluded to the place’s role in the founding of the nation.

It was there in 1776 that delegates voted to instruct Virginia’s representatives to propose independence and later adopted the Virginia Declaration of Rights, which helped shape the Declaration of Independence and the United States Bill of Rights.

On Tuesday, Spanberger connected that legacy to today’s civic engagement.

“But here’s something special about America: On our 250th anniversary, we know better than any other nation what is possible when ordinary citizens — like those who once dreamed here in this room — reject the unacceptable and demand more of their government,” she said.

“And Americans across the country are taking action. They are going to the ballot box to reject this chaos. With their votes, they are writing a new history. A history full of hope.”

In closing, Spanberger quoted George Washington’s warning about “cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled men” and urged Americans to unite “in a ‘common cause’ that will move this nation forward.”

“Because ‘We the People’ have the power to make change, the power to stand up for what is right, and the power to demand more from our nation,” she said.

Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger watches President Trump’s State of the Union statement at Colonial Williamsburg in Williamsburg, Virginia, on February 24, 2026. (Pool photo by Erin Schaff/The New York Times)

This story was originally produced by Virginia Mercurywhich is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network that includes the Ohio Capital Journal and is supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.

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