Recapping Trump’s State of the Union address: From the Politics Desk

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Welcome to a special edition of the newsletter, where we recap President Donald Trump’s record-breaking State of the Union address.

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—Adam Wollner

What to remember from Trump’s State of the Union address

By Sahil Kapur

President Donald Trump delivered a triumphant State of the Union address tonight, proclaiming that he had ushered in a “golden age of America” ​​while taunting Democrats in the House of Representatives and blaming them for the country’s problems.

The speech comes at a perilous time for Trump, as his approval rating has plummeted. Americans have lost confidence in him on the economy for the first time in his political career, according to a wide range of polls, presenting challenges for his party as November’s midterm elections approach.

Yet Trump has not suggested he will adjust his domestic or foreign policy in response. On issues ranging from immigration to the economy to foreign policy, Trump’s speech largely touted his existing policies and offered little new ones.

Here are three takeaways from his speech, which lasted 1 hour and 47 minutes.

Celebrate your economy: Trump unabashedly celebrated the economy, touting the stock market at “all-time highs.”

“We have achieved a transformation like no one has ever seen before. A turnaround that will mark the ages,” he said. “We will never return to where we were a short time ago. »

Trump has done little to acknowledge the economic hardship and pessimism many Americans say they feel about wages and costs, instead declaring that prices are falling. To the extent that he admitted problems existed, he blamed them on his predecessor and congressional Democrats.

Touting immigration crackdown: Trump took credit for his immigration crackdown, boasting that he reduced illegal immigration and created “by far the strongest border in American history.”

He made lengthy remarks highlighting victims of violence and crimes committed by people who were in the United States illegally, with some of the victims’ family members sitting in the audience.

Trump did not mention Alex Pretti And Renee BonneAmerican citizens killed by federal agents in Minneapolis. But Rep. Norma TorresD-Calif., held a sign showing photos of them. Representatives. Ilhan OmarD-Minn., and Rashida TlaibMichigan Democrat, repeatedly shouted at Trump: “You killed Americans. »

Clash with Democrats: Trump extended no olive branches to Democrats, only repeatedly taunting them and blaming them for the high costs. He was outraged by the perception that he had not kept his promise to quickly lower prices.

He criticized the former president Joe Biden “and his corrupt partners in Congress and beyond” for inflation and the “new green scam” and accused them of supporting “open borders for all.”

“The same people in this House who voted for these disasters are suddenly using the word ‘affordability.’ One word – they just used it, someone gave it to them,” a visibly frustrated Trump said. “You caused this problem,” he added, pointing to Democrats.

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