President Trump’s box was filled with family members, administration officials and special guests – invited by first lady Melania Trump – for his Tuesday speech to a joint session of Congress.
Trump children Ivanka, Donald Trump Jr., Eric and Tiffany all attended the event with their respective partners – Jared Kushner, Bettina Anderson, Lara Trump and Michael Boulos.
Melania was seated in the front row of the box, several rows below her father Viktor Knavs.
The first lady was flanked by guests Elliston Berry, a 15-year-old victim of computer-generated deepfakes created by a bully at her school, and Haley Ferguson, a former foster child and recipient of a scholarship launched by Melania’s Be Best anti-cyberbullying campaign.
Second lady Usha Vance was also in the front row and was seated between Payton McNabb, a former high school volleyball player who was left with a traumatic brain injury after competing against a transgender female, and January Littlejohn, a parents’ rights advocate who sued a Florida school board after officials allowed her middle-school-age daughter to socially transition to a different sexual identity without informing her.
Marc Fogel, a teacher who was recently freed after being wrongfully detained for years in a Russian prison, was seated behind the first and second ladies along with his 95-year-old mother, Malphine.
Other guests included slain fireman Corey Comperatore’s family, including his wife Helen and daughters Allyson and Kaylee.
Comperatore was shot and killed as he shielded his family from bullets fired by would-be Trump assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks during a campaign rally in Butler, Pa., last July.
Alexis Nungaray, whose 12-year-old daughter Jocelyn was sexually assaulted and killed, allegedly by two illegal migrants from Venezuela, was also in attendance.
During his speech, Trump announced that he had signed an executive order to honor Jocelyn’s memory, and her love of animals, by renaming a national wildlife refuge near Houston after her.
DJ Daniel, a 13-year-old cancer survivor, was another of Trump’s guests and was made an honorary Secret Service agent in a touching moment during the president’s speech.
Long-time steelworker and foster parent to more than 40 children, Jeff Denard, was also recognized during the president’s speech and sat in the special box.
Trump administration officials seated near the first family and special guests included FBI Director Kash Patel and DOGE chief Elon Musk.
