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You can tell a lot about a party by who’s invited. On March 4, President Donald Trump is scheduled to regale a joint session of Congress with tales of billionaire adviser Elon Musk taking a chain saw to the federal bureaucracy. Oregon’s congressional delegation—seven of the eight are Democrats—must suffer this celebration in silence. But some of them still plan to offer a rebuke to the president, via the guests they’ve invited to sit next to them. Those guests, several of them federal employees handed pink slips by Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency, will serve as a symbolic accounting of what’s been subtracted from the nation in a matter of weeks.
U.S. SEN. RON WYDEN
His guest: He isn’t attending, instead hosting an online town hall, but he is using his guest seats for Patty and Katina Falkenstein.
The message: “Patty Falkenstein depends on Medicaid to provide care for her adult daughter Katina, who has Down syndrome,” Wyden spokesman Henry Stern tells WW. “If Trump’s cuts go through, their family will be devastated.”
U.S. SEN. JEFF MERKLEY
His guest: Isabella Isaksen, former public affairs officer for the Ochoco National Forest and Crooked River National Grassland, fired by DOGE
The message: “Isabella agreed to bear witness to this speech with me,” Merkley said in a statement, “as she and thousands of other public servants across this nation deserve an explanation for why they were illegally fired without any consideration to the immense expertise, value, and economic benefits they bring to our communities.”
U.S. REP. SUZANNE BONAMICI, 1ST DISTRICT
Her guest: Arielle Kane, a former maternal health policy analyst at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, fired by DOGE
The message: “Arielle Kane has dedicated her career to improving the health of mothers and babies,” Bonamici said in a statement. “It’s appalling that Elon Musk’s team of DOGE bros fired her, halting work designed to save lives.”
U.S. REP. MAXINE DEXTER, 3RD DISTRICT
Her guest: Alan Ferschweiler, Portland firefighter and legislative director for the Oregon State Fire Fighters Council
The message: “Oregon’s firefighters are on the front lines of the climate crisis,” Dexter said in a statement. “Trump’s proposed budget cuts to the U.S. Forest Service undermines our state’s ability to combat these fires, putting our lives, homes, and health at risk.”
U.S. REP. JANELLE BYNUM, 5TH DISTRICT
Her guest: Liz Crandall, a former U. S. Forest Service ranger, fired by DOGE
The message: “Our communities are vulnerable to wildfires and after the recent devastation we’ve seen across the country, the Trump administration has responded by firing those who help keep us safe,” Bynum said in a statement. “Liz is a dedicated public servant and played a key role in public safety—her firing benefits no one.”