President Trump gave a daring and controversial speech to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night, six weeks after a White House fire.
This speech, which lasted just under 100 minutes, was among the longest of its sort in contemporary history. It was characterized by dramatic events, such as the expulsion of a member of the Democratic Congress from the hall, the protests of several other Democrats, and the enthusiastic support of the Republican Party for their president.
Trump Boasts About His Achievements—Even the Most Controversial Ones
Ironically, Trump‘s opening statement, “America is back,” was reminiscent to Joe Biden’s opening remarks at the start of his Democratic tenure following Trump’s first term.
This reflected the stark differences in the nation’s identity, values, and course. Trump has advocated for fundamental reforms, calling them a “common sense revolution” characterized by “rapid and unrestrained action.”
Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency have been at the forefront of these initiatives. Many members of the GOP base applauded Trump for praising Musk and elevating him.
However, independent voters and other detractors have fiercely opposed these revisions. Only 34% of independents praised Trump’s performance, and the same 34% praised Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), according to a recent NPR/PBS News/Marist survey. According to two-thirds of those surveyed, Trump was making changes to the federal government too quickly without taking the repercussions into account.
A Speech Designed Mostly for MAGA Adherents
Instead of bridging the political divide, Trump’s address was extremely politicized and only intended to appeal to his MAGA fans.
Rather than making an effort to engage both parties, he completely disregarded Democrats, calling them “these people” and “radical left lunatics.” He even referred to Senator Elizabeth Warren by his contentious nickname “Pocahontas” at one point when talking about the continuing conflict in Ukraine. (Warren replied that she is grateful for U.S. assistance to Ukraine, which Trump has since stopped.)
Trump maintained that no proposal from his administration would ever have Democratic backing. Rather, he concentrated on issues that appeal to his supporters, such as criticizing transgender rights, diversity initiatives, calling for English to be the official language, and renaming Mount McKinley—which was renamed Denali during Obama’s administration—as the highest peak in North America.
“Our country will no longer be woke,” Trump declared.
The focus shifted to the economy and immigration crackdown.
Despite inflation being a major topic in the 2024 elections, Trump spoke more passionately about cracking down on illegal immigration than he did about economic issues and rising costs.
Despite having few tools to influence prices, presidents are frequently given too much credit or blame for the state of the economy. But Trump is employing a blunt weapon that experts caution could raise prices even further: tariffs.His speech coincided with the introduction of harsh new tariffs on Mexico and Canada. Defending them, he called tariffs a way to “save the soul” of the nation—ironically using language similar to Biden but with a completely different intent.
Experts, business owners, and most Americans disagree with him. In the NPR poll, conducted before Trump’s latest round of tariffs, 57% of respondents said they expect prices to rise over the next six months. More people believed Trump’s economic policies would make things worse rather than better.
Yet, rather than addressing these concerns, Trump spent much of his speech blaming Biden. In fact, he mentioned Biden 13 times, at one point saying:
“Joe Biden allowed the price of eggs to skyrocket. The cost of eggs is out of control! And we’re putting a lot of effort into taking them down again.”
However, a bird flu outbreak is mostly to blame for the current spike in egg costs.
Both Republican and Democratic presidents frequently attribute economic problems to their predecessors. Eventually, however, such problems remain with the incumbent.
Verifying Trump’s Statements
Trump made far too many inaccurate and misleading claims to be covered in a single piece. More than 20 statements from his address were fact-checked by NPR. The following are a few of the most noteworthy:
DOGE fraud allegations: Trump overstated the amount of fraud that DOGE had found. The numbers he provided were far more than those released by the agency.
Trump asserted that a large number of “dead” persons, including those who were 120 years old, were still receiving Social Security benefits. But according to his own Social Security Administration, this is untrue. Not fraudulent payments, but missing death records are the problem. Just 1% of payments are sent incorrectly, and they are to living beneficiaries.
Trump asserted that during his first term, his tariffs on China generated trillions of dollars in revenue. This is not true. Despite being applied to $380 billion worth of goods, tariffs did not bring in trillions of dollars. Indeed, they reduced GDP growth in the end, according to many economists.
Trump said that the United States has spent $350 billion on the conflict in Ukraine. The real amount over the last three years is about $115 billion, and a large portion of that has been used for domestic weapons production instead of providing direct assistance to Ukraine. The United States has given Ukraine more military support than any other nation, although Europe as a whole has spent between $130 and 140 billion on financial, humanitarian, and military help.
A Congress Run by Republicans Could Influence Trump’s Agenda
Republican priorities in Congress have already been established and include:
Increasing deportation funding
Another round of significant tax reductions
Increased police presence (without addressing the attack on the Capitol on January 6)
A fresh bill on crime
Anyone found guilty of killing a police officer faces the federal death penalty.
A missile defense system called the “Golden Dome” (inspired by Israel’s Iron Dome)
Political showmanship and theatrics
Trump provided moments of political spectacle as usual. Even while this speech lacked the inspirational and unifying elements of some of his previous speeches, it nevertheless contained:
Announcing the creation of a nature sanctuary in honor of a girl who was reportedly murdered by an illegal Mexican
Appointing a 13-year-old cancer survivor as a Special Agent
Admission to West Point for a high school student
Declaring that the suspected terrorist responsible for the deadly Abbey Gate attack in Afghanistan has been apprehended.
Elissa Slotkin’s Powerful Democratic Reaction
The reaction from Senator Elissa Slotkin of Michigan was evocative of former Senator Jim Webb’s forceful 2007 retort to George W. Bush during the Iraq War.
Slotkin attracted attention, in contrast to numerous previous opposition answers that have occasionally fallen short. She emphasized her history as a former CIA officer, the daughter of a Republican father and a Democratic mother, and a winner of a state that Trump also won in 2024 while standing in front of an array of American flags.
Slotkin stressed that “the middle class is the engine of our country” and cautioned against actions that are too risky. Trump, she said, prioritized tax breaks for billionaires at the expense of vital programs for regular Americans. She also expressed worries about how Elon Musk and his group handled private information.
She cited Reagan when she said:
“I’m glad that Reagan, not Trump, was in charge of us in the 1980s since I grew up during the Cold War. We would have lost the Cold War if Trump had won.
Slotkin’s well-organized speech gave Democrats a plan for thwarting Trump’s plans. Other Democratic reactions, such as Representative Al Green’s passionate tirade that led to his expulsion from the chamber, on the other hand, only served to support Trump’s narrative.
Concluding remarks
Slotkin’s speech may give Democrats a clearer plan going forward as they struggle to define their response to Trump’s highly contentious and swiftly changing first six weeks back in office. His most recent speech demonstrated that he has no intention of softening his stance or reaching across the aisle.
