The Story
Last night, President Trump filled us in on how the country's doing.
I watched most of it. Highlights please.
The theme of his second State of the Union address was unity. He called for compromise and bipartisanship. He said that the country should govern "not as two parties, but as one nation." And asked lawmakers to choose "greatness."
Love that. What else?
There's a lot he's happy about. Like...
The economy...so hot right now. He says wages are rising, jobs are up, and the new tax plan is doing wonders for working families and businesses.
The First Step Act...the bipartisan legislation that was a major update to criminal justice reform that Trump signed late last year. Trump invited Matthew Charles – who he says is the first person released from jail as a result of the legislation. And Alice Johnson, whose sentence he commuted last year before signing the bill.
New trade deals…he said he's working on a new deal with Chinese President Xi Jinping, but it has to reduce the deficit and protect US jobs. He's also pretty pleased to have kicked "the catastrophe known as NAFTA" to the curb.
Women…the moment that sparked joy. He said there are more women in the workforce than ever. And gave the new women in Congress a shoutout. They approved. And showed it with a standing ovation, chanting "USA."
What's he not happy about?
Investigations, or as he calls it "ridiculous partisan investigations." (See: Russia. His inaugural committee. His foundation.) Oh and socialism. He hates socialism.
What's on his to-do list?
The border…he's still trying to get that funding. He made his pitch by calling illegal immigration a threat to national security and the economy. He said we need to protect women who get sexually assaulted during the trek to the border. He says ICE isn't going away. And he invited a woman whose parents were killed by an undocumented immigrant to bring his point home.
Health care...he's ready to take on everything from lowering prescription drug prices to ending the HIV epidemic. He's also asking Congress to protect patients with pre-existing conditions, tackle childhood cancer, and ban late-term abortions. His comments on abortion were some of the most polarizing statements he made all night. And were followed by a sharp transition to...military spending.
Infrastructure...he says it needed to be fixed yesterday. And wants lawmakers to put money towards investments in "cutting edge industries of the future." Specifics for a later date. Probably.
North Korea...paging Chris Harrison. Trump and NK leader Kim Jong Un are having their second one-on-one in Vietnam on Feb 27 and 28. He also said that we should all be thanking him because if anyone else was prez, we'd be at war right now.
Cool. Cool. Will send a thank you note. Now, why was everyone wearing white?
To represent the women's suffrage movement.
What were those papers Nancy Pelosi kept looking at?
They seemed to be a copy of Trump's speech. Unclear if it included the introduction she was supposed to give.
Speaking of Nancy, did Dems chime in at all?
Yup. Stacey Abrams – the first black woman to deliver a SOTU rebuttal – said she doesn't always agree with Trump, but she doesn't want him to fail. She brought up a personal story about her dad to highlight the need for lowering health care costs. She challenged Republicans on abortion and LGBTQ rights. And called for a realistic talk about racism in the country.
theSkimm
Last night, the president gave his pitch for unity directly to the American people. The first test will be whether lawmakers in a divided Congress can come to a funding agreement to keep the gov open past Feb 15. The second will be whether Trump takes his own advice.
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