WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump delivered a triumphant State of the Union address on Tuesday, declaring that he had ushered in a “golden age of America” as he mocked Democrats on the court and blamed the country’s problems on them.
The speech comes at a dangerous time for Trump as his approval ratings have plummeted. Americans have lost confidence in him on the economy for the first time in his political career, according to a number of polls, revealing problems for his party ahead of November’s midterm elections.
Still, Trump did not suggest he would adjust his domestic or foreign policies in response. On issues ranging from immigration to the economy to foreign policy, Trump’s speech was heavy on promoting his existing policies and offering new ones.
Instead, he sounded defiant and proud of his first year back in office as he chatted with Democrats and encouraged them to answer him. They responded, mixed with silence, shouts of anger and even sarcastic laughter.
Here are three takeaways from his speech, which clocked in at over 1 hour and 45 minutes.
To celebrate his economy
Trump shamelessly celebrated the economy, lifting the stock market “all the time.”
“We have reached a revolution that no one has seen before. A revolution since ancient times,” he said. “We will not go back to where we were a short time ago.”
Trump said that short of acknowledging the economic pain and pessimism that many Americans report feeling when it comes to wages and expenses, he instead announced that prices are falling. To the extent that he acknowledged that problems exist, he placed the blame on his predecessor and the Democrats in Congress.
He bragged about his “big, good bill” – including a tax break for tips and overtime and a withholding for the elderly (which he misidentified as “no Social Security tax”. He suggested “Trump accounts” that benefit children’s taxes.
And he defended his tax as a way to “make big deals for our country” and slammed the Supreme Court’s decision to outlaw them as “disappointing.” He said he would use a separate authority to continue imposing tariffs and said he would not need congressional approval, but the full rates he announced last week would require a 150-day deadline.
It proposes a cut-off of people from other countries
Trump took credit for his crackdown on immigration, boasting that he had delivered “the strongest border in American history so far” and reduced illegal immigration.
He gave extended remarks highlighting victims of violence and crimes committed by people who were in the US illegally, with some family members of the victims sitting in the audience.
Trump did not mention Alex Pretti and Renee Good, American citizens who were killed by federal agents in Minneapolis. But Rep. Norma Torres, D-Calif., held a sign displaying their photos. Ilhan Omar, D-Ill., and Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., repeatedly shouted at Trump: “He killed the American people.”
Trump also said little about the ongoing shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security without blaming it on Democrats and saying he “wants a full and immediate return of all DHS funding” as negotiations continue to stall.
Going against the Democrats
Trump did not extend olive branches to the Democrats, instead he repeatedly mocked them and blamed them for high spending. He expressed anger at the idea that he had not followed through on his promise to lower prices immediately.
He criticized former President Joe Biden “and his corrupt allies in Congress and beyond” for inflation and the “new green scam” and accused them of supporting “open borders for everyone.”
“The same people in this room who voted for those disasters are suddenly using the word ‘unaffordability.’ The word — they just used it, somebody gave it to them,” a visibly frustrated Trump said. “You caused that problem,” he added, referring to Democrats.
He vowed that Republicans — not Democrats — would “always protect Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid,” as his signature “big, beautiful bill” cut Medicaid by $1 trillion.
He pointed to Democrats and said, “These people are crazy,” prompting Vice President JD Vance and House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., to stand up and applaud.
He said the “crippling health care costs” are “caused by you,” looking at the Democratic side of the aisle, blasting the Affordable Care Act after successfully trying to eliminate part of the law’s health insurance tax credits last year, leading to higher costs. He presented his plan, parts of which are still in Congress.
He named former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., as he attacked lawmakers for profiting from public service — despite his actions as president helping to increase his net worth by $3 billion by 2025, according to Forbes.
While many Democrats skipped the speech entirely, others used the event to make their own point.
Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, was fired for the second year in a row after he held up a sign at Trump that read “BLACK PEOPLE ARE NOT KING!” referring to a recent video produced by artificial intelligence on Trump’s social media account. Trump removed the video, which portrayed the Obamas as monkeys and criticized many people, but said he would not apologize for it.
Last year, Green was fired after calling out Trump for Medicaid cuts.
Trump also called on the Senate to pass the SAVE America Act to reform election laws across the country while saying of Democrats, “The only way they get elected is to cheat.”
And he referred to his second term, adding: “I should be in my third term.” Some Republicans laughed.
