President Donald Trump delivered a record-breaking 108-minute State of the Union address Tuesday night, declaring "we're winning so much" as he attempted to convince Americans the economy is stronger than many believe.
Trump's address, his first State of the Union of his second term, came as he hopes to counter sliding approval ratings and boost Republicans ahead of November's midterm elections.
The president spent a significant portion of the speech on the economy, which polls indicate is the top issue on the minds of Americans. He addressed rising electricity costs, calling on major tech companies to provide for their own power needs.
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"We're telling the major tech companies that they have the obligation to provide for their own power needs. They can build their own power plants as part of their factory so that no one's prices will go up and in many cases prices of electricity will go down for the community and very substantially down," Trump said.
On health care, Trump called on Congress to pass legislation directing money away from insurance companies and into the hands of Americans directly.
"I want to stop all payments to big insurance companies and instead give that money directly to the people so they can buy their own health care, which would be better health care at a much lower cost," Trump said.
On Iran, Trump addressed what he called the world's top sponsor of terror.
"My preference is to solve this problem through diplomacy, but one thing is certai,n I will never allow the world's number one sponsor of terror, which they are by far to have a nuclear weapon. Can't let that happen," Trump said.
Democrats sat for much of the address, particularly when Trump touted his record on immigration. In one of the night's most contentious moments, Trump challenged Democrats to stand when he raised the issue.
"If you agree with this statement, then stand up and show your support. The first duty of the American government is to protect American citizens, not illegal aliens. Isn't that a shame? You should be ashamed of yourself not standing up. You should be ashamed of yourself. That is why I'm also asking you to end deadly sanctuary cities that protect the criminals and enact serious penalties for public officials who block the removal of criminal aliens in many cases drug lords, murderers all over our country. They're blocking the removal of these people out of our country and you should be ashamed of yourself," Trump said.
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Texas Democratic Congressman Al Green was escorted out of the chamber after attempting to disrupt the address by holding up a sign. Green was also removed from last year's address. Democratic leadership had told members ahead of the speech that if they planned to cause a disruption, it was best to stay home.
One of the rare bipartisan moments of the night came when members of the U.S. men's Olympic hockey team, who won gold, were welcomed with a multi-minute standing ovation. There was also bipartisan applause when Trump called on Congress to address members trading stocks, amid accusations that lawmakers are profiting from their positions — though some members shouted back, noting Trump did not address the Trump family's finances.
A handful of Supreme Court justices attended, including Justice Amy Coney Barrett. Chief Justice John Roberts was also present. Several prominent Democrats did not attend, and some empty seats in areas traditionally reserved for Democrats were filled by Republicans.
Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger delivered the official Democratic response, asking viewers whether what they heard from the president was working for them.
"Here's the truth over the last year through DOGE, mass firings, and the appointment of deeply unserious people to our nation's most serious positions, our president has endangered the long and storied history of the United States of America being a force for good," Spanberger said.
Trump is expected to travel to Texas later this week to continue making his case to the American public.
