President Donald Trump in his joint address to Congress Tuesday vowed to keep up his campaign of “swift and unrelenting action” in reorienting the nation’s economy, immigration and foreign policy, leaving Democratic legislators to register their dissent with stone faces, placards calling out “lies,” and one legislator’s ejection.
The president kicked off his primetime speech — the longest annual presidential address to Congress in American history — by touting his victory in November 2024 and the hundreds of executive actions he has taken since he took office in January.
Full Video: Rep. Al Green ejected from Trump address to Congress for heckling
“The presidential election of November 5 was a mandate like has not been seen in many decades. We won all seven swing states, giving us an electoral college victory of 312 votes. We won the popular vote by big numbers,” Trump said.
He also highlighted immigration raids, the protection of police officers and the cuts Elon Musk has made in his Department of Government Efficiency.
“He’s working very hard. He didn’t need this. He didn’t need this. Thank you very much. We appreciate it,” Trump said of Musk.
Fact-checking Trump’s speech to Congress
The president also called out lawmakers on the other side of the aisle, who held up signs saying “SAVE MEDICAID,” “MUSK STEALS” and “FALSE.” Democrats also wore specific colors to protest Trump’s speech: Democratic women wore pink, members of the Congressional Black Caucus wore black and supporters of Ukraine wore blue and yellow. Trump criticized their lack of enthusiasm for his policies.
“These people sitting right here will not clap, will not stand and certainly will not cheer for these astronomical achievements. They won’t do it no matter what. Five times I’ve been up here, it’s very sad, and it just shouldn’t be this way. So, Democrats sitting before me for just this one night, why not join us in celebrating so many incredible wins for America, for the good of our nation,” Trump said.
Trump spoke at a critical juncture in his presidency, as voters who returned him to the White House on his promise to fix inflation are instead finding economic chaos. All the gains the S&P 500 have made since Election Day are now gone, while consumer sentiment surveys show the public sees inflation as worsening.
Here’s why some Democrats wore pink during Trump’s speech to Congress
Trump seemed prepared to double down on his trade policies, which experts have warned will raise prices for consumers.
“Whatever they tariff us, we tariff them. Whatever they tax us, we tax them,” Trump said. At the same time, he tried to ease concerns about the resulting price increases, saying, “There’ll be a little disturbance, but we’re okay with that. It won’t be much.”
Michigan Sen. Elissa Slotkin, who delivered the Democratic response following Trump’s speech, allowed that “America wants change, but there’s a responsible way to make change and a reckless way, and we can make that change without forgetting who we are as a country and as a democracy.”
Watch Trump’s full speech
Trump’s full speech to congress Tuesday can be found in the video below, and on NBC Chicago’s YouTube channel here.
