Washington
CNN
—
A teenage girl bullied with AI-generated deepfakes, the family of the firefighter killed during the Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, and the mother and sister of slain student Laken Riley are among those headed to the US Capitol Tuesday evening where President Donald Trump is set to deliver an address to a joint session of Congress.
Trump’s remarks will both touch on his accomplishments of the first six weeks of his presidency and offer a preview of upcoming priorities as he has reimagined the use of executive authority, shifted the role of the US in the world and transformed the size and scope of the federal government. The theme of Tuesday’s address, according to the White House, is “the renewal of the American dream.”
And the guest list for first lady Melania Trump’s box could offer a blueprint for what to expect from the speech. Each guest has a connection to a Trump administration policy.
The first lady’s 15 guests represent key administration accomplishments – from an executive order banning transgender women from women’s sports to its efforts to bring home Marc Fogel, an American who was wrongfully imprisoned by Russia. They also represent issues the administration has vowed to tackle, including a push by the first lady to pass a bill to protect Americans from AI-generated deepfake and revenge pornography to the economy and border security.
“These men, women, and families come from all different walks of life with incredible stories about the disaster wrought by the previous administration, and the historic achievements President Trump has already enacted,” the White House said in a statement.
Here’s who to watch for during Tuesday’s speech:
Helen, Allyson, and Kaylee Comperatore, the widow and daughters of Corey Comperatore, a firefighter shot and killed during the attempted assassination of Trump, will be among the first lady’s guests. Corey Comperatore died trying to protect his family, according to Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, shielding them from bullets that ultimately took his life.
Immigration and border security
There will be multiple guests representing Trump’s border security policies, including Alexis Nungaray, the mother of a 12-year-old, Jocelyn, who was murdered when she went on a walk to a Houston convenience store. Two undocumented immigrants from Venezuela have been charged with her murder.
Allyson and Lauren Phillips, the mother and sister of Laken Riley, will also be in attendance. Riley, a 22-year old Georgia student, was killed last year while out for a run. An undocumented migrant from Venezuela was convicted and sentenced to life without parole. Trump’s first major legislative victory, the Laken Riley Act, requires detention of undocumented migrants charged with certain crimes.
And Roberto Ortiz, an agent with Customs and Border Protection, “has been shot at repeatedly by cartel members while performing his duties near the Rio Grande River in Texas,” according to the White House.
The Trumps will welcome Stephanie Diller, the widow of Jonathan Diller, a New York City Police Department officer who was shot and killed during a traffic stop in Queens in March 2024 . During the 2024 campaign, then-candidate Trump attended a memorial service for Diller.
“We have to get back to law and order,” he said after the service.
Trump is likely to highlight his executive action to deliver on a political issue central to his 2024 campaign, banning transgender women from competing in women’s sports, during his remarks Tuesday.
The first lady will host Payton McNabb, “a former high school athlete who had her dreams of competing in college sports crushed in a September 2022 volleyball match when a biological man playing on the opposing women’s team spiked the volleyball at Payton’s face, leaving her with a traumatic brain injury,” according to the White House.
The first lady is also hosting January Littlejohn, “a mother and parents’ rights advocate who sued the School Board of Leon County after school officials at her daughter’s middle school socially transitioned her daughter to a different sexual identity without January and her husband’s knowledge or permission,” per the White House.
Marc Fogel, an American teacher wrongfully detained for more than three years in Russia, returned to the US last month through a deal negotiated by President Trump, Special Envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff, “and the President’s advisers,” according to a statement from national security adviser Mike Waltz.
Joined by his 95-year-old mother Malphine, Fogel’s release marked the start of US talks with Russia as the president has sought to position himself as a dealmaker to broker peace between Russia and Ukraine. Trump has subsequently suspended aid to war-torn Ukraine.
The president is likely to highlight kitchen table issues and domestic manufacturing during his address on Tuesday, coinciding with planned tariffs on Mexico, Canada, and China.
Jeff Denard will be among the Trumps’ guests. Denard, per the White House, “has spent nearly three decades working at a steel plant owned by Nucor Steel. His good paying, middle class job at the steel plant has allowed Jeff to serve as volunteer firefighter, provide a loving home to dozens of foster children, and organize his fellow steelworkers to respond to natural disasters, including Hurricane Helene.”
In her first public remarks of her husband’s second term, Melania Trump went to Capitol Hill on Monday to push for the passage of the “TAKE IT DOWN” Act, a bill aimed at protecting Americans from AI-generated deepfake and revenge pornography. Elliston Berry, 15, joined Trump to tell her story.
“They superimposed her (Elliston’s) face into pornographic content without her consent, solely to humiliate her. And although Elliston’s family contacted the social media companies for help, their efforts fell upon deaf ears. Ultimately, the fake images circulated worldwide,” the first lady said.
Elliston will be sitting with the first lady.
Trump is also seeking to highlight the foster care community through her “Foster the Future” initiative. Haley Ferguson, a former foster child, is a college student studying elementary education who received a scholarship from that initiative, according to the White House.
CNN’s Zoe Sottile, Clare Foran, and Jennifer Hansler contributed to this report.
