President Donald Trump used his State of the Union address as an appeal to the American people to convince them that under Republican leadership, the country is improving.
His speech comes at a crucial time: voters are souring on his agenda with the midterms roughly eight months away. Trump touted his economic achievements, highlighting his efforts to cut prices, positive economic numbers and new provisions in last year’s tax bill.
“Our country is winning again,” Trump said.
The president spotlighted progress on issues like immigration, declaring: “In the past nine months, zero illegal aliens have been admitted to the United States.” He also claimed progress on economic issues like the prices of gas, groceries and energy.
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Trump unveiled details on new retirement savings accounts and announced a “rate payer protection pledge” to address increased energy costs associated with data center construction.
“Many Americans are also concerned that energy demand from AI data centers could unfairly drive up their electric utility bills,” he said. “We’re telling the major tech companies that they have the obligation to provide for their own power needs. They can build their own power plants as part of their factory so that no one’s prices will go up.”
He instructed Congress to pass “Dalilah’s Law,” which would bar states from issuing drivers licences to undocumented immigrants, and the bipartisan Stop Insider Trading Act, a bill that restricts lawmakers from buying and selling individual stocks.
“As we ensure that all Americans can profit from a rising stock market, let’s also ensure that members of Congress cannot corruptly profit from using insider information,” Trump said. “Pass the Stop Insider Trading Act without delay.”
He also announced that Vice President JD Vance would be leading a nationwide effort to combat fraud.
“If we’re able to find enough of that fraud, we will actually have a balanced budget overnight. It will go very quickly,” Trump said. “That’s the kind of money you’re talking about. We’ll balance our budget.”
Leading up to the speech, the White House told NOTUS that while Congress was in the building, Trump’s audience would be the American people. Trump made only a passing mention of the ongoing government shutdown over Department of Homeland Security funding and made no mention of the continued fallout over the Epstein files.
Trump has hinted at a potential strike on Iran for weeks. Secretary of State Marco Rubio briefed the “Gang of Eight” on Iran hours before the speech, leading to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer saying that Trump would have to make his case to the American people.
Though Trump laid some rhetorical groundwork for military action in Iran — citing the Iranians’ unwillingness to swear off nuclear weapons and claiming that Iran is working to build missiles that “will soon reach the United States of America” — during the speech he did not commit to any action.
“My preference is to solve this problem through diplomacy,” he said. “But one thing is certain: I will never allow the world’s No. 1 sponsor of terror, which they are by far, to have a nuclear weapon. Can’t let that happen.” That was one line that garnered rare bipartisan applause.
The president used the prime-time speech to confront Democrats. He repeatedly blamed them for crimes related to illegal immigration and for rising prices.
“You caused that problem,” Trump said, referring to the Democrats in the chamber. “You caused that problem. They knew their statements were a lie. They knew it. They knew their statements were a dirty, rotten lie. Their policies created the high prices. Our policies are rapidly ending them. We are doing really well.”
Throughout the speech, a few Democrats shouted back: Reps. Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib heckled him.
“That’s a lie, and you’re a liar,” Omar said as Trump alleged fraud by the Somali community in Minnesota, calling them “Somali pirates.”
The president also met with opposition from outside the room, with dozens of Democrats skipping the speech, leaving rows and rows of the chamber empty. For much of the address, the majority of Democrats in the room remained seated and stone-faced, even when baited by Trump.
“One of the great things about the State of the Union is how it gives Americans the chance to see clearly what their representatives really believe,” Trump said. “So tonight, I’m inviting every legislature to join with my administration in reaffirming a fundamental principle. If you agree with this statement, then stand up and show your support: The first duty of the American government is to protect American citizens, not illegal aliens.” Directing his comments to Democrats, the president chided them for remaining seated, saying, “You should be ashamed of yourself for not standing up. You should be ashamed of yourself.”
Later in the address, after highlighting his policies on gender-related issues, the president turned to the Democrats in the room and remarked, “These people are crazy.”
With four members of the Supreme Court — Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Elena Kagan, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett — sitting in the front row, Trump called the court’s decision to strike down his tariff authority “disappointing.”
Meanwhile, Republicans reveled in the moment, cheering and jeering throughout the president’s lengthy address. Multiple guests were spotlighted, including Erika Kirk, the widow of the conservative activist Charlie Kirk; the mother of Iryna Zarutska, a Ukrainian refugee killed in North Carolina last year; and the parents of Sarah Beckstrom, a member of the National Guard killed in Washington last year.
Trump also welcomed the U.S. men’s hockey team, prompting the chamber to chant: “U-S-A!”.
For the second year in a row, Trump’s State of the Union speech set a record for the longest address to a joint session of Congress, clocking in at 1 hour and 47 minutes.
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