Supreme Court Justices Sit in Silence at Trump’s State of the Union

Although local and national news would have you think it is an act of protest, the silence of Supreme Court justices during President Trump’s State of the Union is not a statement at all but a long standing tradition meant to keep the court out of politics.

When justices attend the State of the Union, they do so as observers, not participants, and they deliberately avoid clapping, standing, or reacting to policy proposals because the court is expected to remain neutral and independent from the political branches of government. Any visible reaction could be interpreted as taking sides on issues that may later come before them in court.

What the coverage often leaves out is that it is also not unusual for justices to skip the State of the Union altogether, and it has become increasingly common over the last several decades. In fact, the tradition of justices attending is relatively modern. Between 1913 and 1964, justices attended only seven out of 35 addresses. Attendance increased after the speech moved to prime time television in 1965, but even then participation has been inconsistent. In 1975, no justices attended President Ford’s address. In 1986, all justices missed President Reagan’s speech after it was rescheduled following the Challenger disaster. In 2000, all nine justices were absent from President Bill Clinton’s address for a mix of personal and health reasons.

More recently, attendance has dropped sharply as justices have become more uncomfortable with the increasingly partisan and theatrical nature of the event. Justice Antonin Scalia stopped attending after 1997, calling it a political spectacle. Justice Clarence Thomas described the atmosphere as uncomfortable due to the shouting and reactions in the chamber. Justice Samuel Alito stopped attending after a 2010 incident during President Obama’s speech, later saying justices were treated like potted plants. Even Chief Justice John Roberts has publicly said the State of the Union has turned into a political pep rally, though he continues to attend at times.

The numbers reflect this shift. Academic research shows average attendance fell from about 84 percent between 1965 and 1980 to roughly 32 percent between 2000 and 2011. At President Trump’s 2026 address, only four justices were present, Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Amy Coney Barrett, Brett Kavanaugh, and Elena Kagan, a level of attendance that is now entirely normal by modern standards.

If silence and partial attendance are routine and well documented, why does the media keep presenting it as controversy instead of context?