Donald Trump Delivers Address to Joint Session of Congress
At 9:07 P.M. EST, President of the United States Donald Trump arrived behind the podium to deliver his speech in the United States House of Representatives. He was then introduced by Speaker of the House Paul Ryan who was behind him; Vice President of the United States Mike Pence was also behind the President.
Mr. Trump began his speech condemning recent expressions of hatred toward Jewish Community Centers, an incident of violence in Kansas, and bigotry in general. He proceeded to address frequent refrains of America’s border security and unemployment. He acknowledged his own political victory, indicating that he believed it represented a seismic shift in America’s politics.
“We will keep our promises to the American people,” President Trump said, on the heels of addressing infrastructure improvement and aiding urban America.
Mr. Trump touted his deregulation efforts and his administration’s work to “drain the swamp” in America’s capital by imposing greater restrictions on political lobbying. He referred to the Trans-Pacific Partnership as “job-killing” and touted the fact that he pulled the United States out of entering into it.
“We will stop the drugs from pouring into our country,” Mr. Trump said, calling for aiding the drug-addicted.
“We must restore integrity and the rule of law at our borders,” he proclaimed, after shedding light on his efforts for border security and continued his call for a border wall on the U.S.-Mexico Border. He called for protecting America against terrorism, saying that he has asked his Department of Defense to formulate a plan against the terrorist organization, ISIS.
He asked the United States Senate to “swiftly approve” his Supreme Court pick, Neil Gorsuch. Sitting in the gallery was the widow of former Justice Antonin Scalia; Mr. Gorsuch would be taking his place if confirmed.
Mr. Trump called for promoting economic policies that would aid opportunities in the United States but would make it more difficult for companies to leave the country. While reiterating his conviction in “free trade”, he also voiced his desire for “fair trade”. He said that he would restore jobs in the United States also indicating that he wanted America to have “a merit-based system” of immigration that would not harm employment opportunities for Americans.
Mr. Trump also advocated for a one-trillion dollar plan for America’s infrastructure, arguing that money spent on America’s foreign policy in the Middle East could have been spent on the nation’s infrastructure. Mr. Trump called for reform of healthcare in the United States, beseeching Congress to “repeal and replace” the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). On healthcare reform, Mr. Trump made pleas for bipartisanship.
“Education is the civil rights issue of our time,” Mr. Trump said, pushing for “school choice” arguing that such a measure would benefit minority children.
“We must support the incredible men and women of law enforcement,” Mr. Trump proclaimed; on the heels of this statement, Mr. Trump called out family members of Americans who have been killed by immigrants in the United States illegally. They were seated in the gallery. The President advocated for an increase in defense spending. A long round of applause was given after Mr. Trump honored Ryan Owens, who died in a military raid, and his widow who was in the gallery. Mr. Trump declared support for the NATO alliance, but also said that other countries should “pay their fair share” in the alliance’s budget. Despite the message of international solidarity, he firmly stated, “My job is not to represent the world; my job is to represent the United States of America.”
“I am asking all citizens to embrace this renewal of the American spirit,” Mr. Trump said after calling for unity and right before the conclusion of his speech.
