President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address took a turn about an hour in.
Until that point, Trump largely stuck to a positive message — reciting improving economic indicators, showcasing the Olympic men’s hockey team and invoking the nation’s 250th birthday. The country was “the hottest,” everyone was “winning.”
Then he asked for a demonstration to show the television audience where everyone stood — or sat.
“If you agree with this statement,” he said, “then stand up and show your support: The first duty of the American government is to protect American citizens, not illegal aliens.” For more than a minute, Republicans stood and applauded, while Trump shook his head and sighed at the Democratic side of the chamber.
The consciously made-for-TV moment from the reality star turned president was destined for shareable online clips and campaign attack ads. It also marked an inflection point in Tuesday’s speech, from a first hour whose sunny optimism was more characteristic of Ronald Reagan than Trump, to a second hour that returned the president to the familiar, darker territory of partisan barbs and graphic descriptions of violence.
The time for policy disagreements was over. The opposition was “crazy,” “sick” and “destroying our country.” His microphone was too hot, repeatedly giving static feedback when he raised his voice.
The contrast also defines his party’s twin emphases for November’s midterms. On the economy, Trump showed Republicans how to argue that they were turning the country around, with more work to do, but progress to be proud of. Inflation slowed in January to an annual rate of 2.4 percent, down from 2.7 percent in December.
“Their policies created the high prices,” he said of the Democrats. “Our policies are rapidly ending them. We are doing really well. Those prices are plummeting downward.”
On immigration, he rehearsed his usual themes of blaming newcomers, especially the undocumented, for crime, drugs and welfare fraud.
Trump’s guests for the speech included family members of Americans killed by undocumented immigrants, following up on an event dedicated to such families on Monday. Undocumented immigrants are arrested less than half as often as native-born citizens for violent and drug crimes, according to a 2024 study funded by the Justice Department’s National Institute of Justice.
“The Somali pirates who ransacked Minnesota remind us that there are large parts of the world where bribery, corruption and lawlessness are the norm,” he said. “Importing these cultures through unrestricted immigration and open borders brings those problems right here to the USA.”
Both halves of Trump’s message may face resistance from swing voters.
His message of economic success may be a hard sell for a skeptical public, with most Americans still reporting concerns about costs of housing, groceries and health care, which surged after the coronavirus pandemic. A Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll conducted Feb. 12-17 found that 57 percent of Americans disapproved of Trump’s handling of the economy, and 65 percent disapproved of his handling of inflation. His overall disapproval rating hit 60 percent for the first time since the aftermath of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Trump’s ratings on immigration have also declined 10 percentage points from a year earlier, amid criticism of tactics used by federal agents in cities such as Minneapolis, where federal agents shot and killed two U.S. citizens.
According to real-time reactions from a panel of viewers convened by the Democratic firm Navigator Research, support for Trump fell when he said Americans are “winning,” when he said prices were dropping and when he mentioned tariffs.
In the Democrats’ official response, Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger took Trump’s emphases head-on, arguing that his tariffs and funding cuts for rural hospitals and Medicaid were making lives less affordable and that the administration’s immigration enforcement efforts were making communities less safe.
“In his speech tonight, the president did what he always does. He lied, he scapegoated and he distracted,” she said. “And he offered no real solutions to our nation’s pressing challenges, so many of which he is actively making worse.”
Democratic leaders in Congress encouraged lawmakers to skip Trump’s speech rather than engage in the disruptions that have marked recent presidential addresses to Congress. Still, Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) was ejected for holding a protest sign, and Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-Minnesota) and Rashida Tlaib (D-Michigan) shouted back at Trump during his attacks on immigrants.
“He’s trying to distract everyone from the reality that every time he actually has to govern, his policies are a train wreck,” Democratic strategist Kelly Dietrich said after the speech. “He would rather divide us and create distractions than for us to be talking about the fact that groceries and energy prices are still sky high.”
The third section of the speech was reserved for foreign affairs, the realm that has occupied much of Trump’s attention this term, to the frustration of some supporters who want to see him focus on the domestic issues that led voters to return him to the White House. He briefly addressed the military buildup in the Middle East amid negotiations with Iran, but did not make a detailed case for what could become an extended war.
Trump’s speech was light on new policy announcements. He said his administration would give all Americans access to retirement savings accounts akin to what federal employees receive, with $1,000 government matching funds. He did not elaborate on how the accounts would work or whether expanding access to them would require congressional authorization.
He said Vice President JD Vance would lead a “war on fraud,” which he said would recover enough money to balance the budget. The 2025 federal deficit was $1.78 trillion.
He pressed the Senate to adopt a House bill requiring proof of citizenship and ID for voting, and condemned Democrats for opposing it. Notably, however, Trump did not renew his demand to change Senate rules, which would probably be necessary to advance the measure. The chamber’s Republican leaders have rejected that idea.
“They want to cheat, they have cheated, and their policy is so bad that the only way they can get elected is to cheat,” Trump said of the Democrats.
In a Spanish-language response, Sen. Alex Padilla (D-California) accused Trump of wanting to manipulate the next election.
“These are tactics we have seen in other countries governed by corrupt dictators,” Padilla said. “And like them, Donald Trump is afraid of losing power. He is afraid to admit that his policies have failed and that voters will reject his agenda this November.”
In place of new policies, Trump announced honors including a Presidential Medal of Freedom for U.S. hockey goalie Connor Hellebuyck; a Medal of Honor for Chief Warrant Officer Eric Slover, a pilot in the raid to capture Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro; another Medal of Honor for 100-year-old Navy fighter pilot Royce Williams; a Legion of Merit for Coast Guard rescue swimmer Scott Ruskan; and a Purple Heart for National Guard Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, who was wounded in the November attack on National Guard personnel in Washington.
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