During the New Year's Eve performance of their hit song "American Idiot," punk band Green Day took the opportunity to criticize former President Trump and his followers. The band, known for their rebellious and politically charged lyrics, altered the lyrics of the second verse to target the MAGA (Make America Great Again) movement. Lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong, although appearing to garble the lyrics, reportedly sang, "I'm not a part of a MAGA agenda," instead of the original line, "I'm not a part of the redneck agenda."

The alteration of the lyrics did not go unnoticed, as multiple outlets reported on Armstrong's apparent reference to the "MAGA agenda." The audience seemed to respond positively, cheering in support of the band's criticism. "American Idiot," released in 2004, was a protest song criticizing American culture in the post-9/11 era, reflecting the band's discontent with the country.

This was not the first time Green Day performed the song with anti-Trump lyrics. In 2019, during the iHeartRadio festival in Las Vegas, they sang the same altered lyrics. Additionally, during the 2016 American Music Awards, Armstrong chanted, "No Trump! No KKK! No fascist USA!" while performing their song "Bang Bang."

It is no secret that Armstrong holds disdain for Trump and conservative political causes. In a 2016 interview with Kerrang! magazine, he compared Trump to Adolf Hitler, expressing sympathy for Trump's followers who he believed were being preyed upon. Armstrong stated, "The worst problem I see about Trump is who his followers are. I actually feel bad for them, because they're poor, working-class people who can't get a leg up. They're just pissed off, and he's preyed on their anger. He just said, 'You have no options and I'm the only one, and I'm going to take care of it myself.' I mean, that's fucking Hitler, man!"

During a performance in France in 2018, Armstrong passionately voiced his hatred for Trump, stating, "I fucking hate Donald Trump so much. I used to scream I hated George Bush. This one is a little different. This one is bad, it's like acid gone bad. Fucking LSD and the American Right, man." The musician's strong opinions on Trump were further highlighted when he announced in London, following the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022, that he was “renouncing” his U.S. citizenship. He declared, "Fuck America, I'm fucking renouncing my citizenship. I'm fucking coming here. There's just too much fucking stupid in the world to go back to that miserable fucking excuse for a country. Oh, I'm not kidding. You're going to get a lot of me in the coming days."

Green Day's performance on "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve" served as another platform for the band to express their political views. With their altered lyrics and outspoken disdain for Trump, they continue to use their music as a means of protest and criticism against the current state of American politics.