President Donald Trump delivered his fourth State of the Union address Tuesday, the first of his second term, where he declared that America has undergone a “turnaround for the ages.”
The president split his time between touting his alleged successes from the past year and announcing a handful of new policy proposals, goading Democrats on issues ranging from immigration to transgender children.
Trump’s remarks loosely followed the bones of his typical campaign stumping but did feature a number of notable themes and moments, the first of which occurred just minutes into Trump’s speech.
Rep. Al Green (D-TX) was ejected from the chamber after allegedly yelling at the president. Green had been holding up a sign reading “Black People Aren’t Apes,” in reference to a racist meme posted to the president’s Truth Social account earlier this month.
Here’s what you need to know from Trump’s speech Tuesday night.
Affordability, top of mind
Just last week, speaking in Georgia, Trump declared that he’d “won affordability,” despite the economy consistently polling as a top issue for voters heading into the 2026 midterm elections.
Republican lawmakers and officials have quietly pressed the president to do more to address affordability concerns, and almost immediately upon stepping on the dais, Trump sought to compare former President Joe Biden’s economic stewardship with his own agenda. The president claimed his policies have driven down core inflation to the “lowest level in five years,” citing steady declines in gasoline prices and recent dips in mortgage rates.
“A short time ago, we were a dead country. Now we are the hottest country anywhere in the world,” he declared. “I say tonight, to members of Congress: the state of our union is strong.”
Still, the president gave a tacit nod to voters’ concerns by announcing new economic proposals. Specifically, Trump announced an agreement between the White House and tech companies to have the firms build their own energy sources for data centers across the country.
The president also pressed Congress to pass a second budget reconciliation package this year. Trump hopes the new package will include tax cuts for American households that didn’t make it into last year’s One Big Beautiful Bill, as well as additional cuts for American corporations.
He also said his administration would allow adult workers without a 401K “access to the same type of retirement plan offered to every federal worker,” with a federal match of up to $1,000 per year.
Supreme Court tariff standoff
The president proceeded to tick off economic wins, such as his Most Favored Nations drug pricing plan and the creation of the so-called Trump Accounts, investment accounts partially funded by the federal government, before even addressing the elephant in the room: Last Friday’s Supreme Court ruling that struck down his “Liberation Day” reciprocal tariff slate.
Trump held a press conference last week following the ruling, where he called the six justices who ruled against him “lap dogs” for the Democrats and accused foreign actors of influencing the decision.
But Tuesday night, Trump presented a more even tone, referring to the ruling as “unfortunate” and seeking to spin it into a positive.
“The good news is that almost all countries and corporations want to keep the deal that they already made,” he declared, noting that sectoral and unfair trade tariffs remain on the books. “As time goes by, I believe the tariffs paid for by foreign countries will, like in the past, substantially replace the modern-day system of income tax, taking a great financial burden off the people that I love.”
Americana on full display
There’s very little Trump cares about more than winning.
And true to form, he hosted members of the U.S. Men’s Olympic Hockey team, fresh off a gold medal victory over Canada on Sunday, as special guests of the White House. The team’s entrance caused the room to erupt into bipartisan chants of “U-S-A!”
“That’s the first time I’ve ever seen them get up,” Trump joked, referencing the cheers from Democrats. “And actually not all of them did get up.”
Trump later announced that he would award goaltender Connor Hellebuyck, who saved 41 of 42 Canadian shots on goal during the gold medal game, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor.
But Trump also sprinkled a heavy dose of Americana imagery throughout the bulk of his remarks.
The president highlighted this coming summer’s America 250 celebration, where the country will “mark two and a half centuries of liberty and triumph, progress and freedom in the most incredible and exceptional nation ever to exist on the face of the Earth.”
“You’ve seen nothing yet. We’re going to do better and better and better,” he declared. “This is the golden age of America.”
Immigration: ‘You should be ashamed of yourself’
Traditionally a standout issue for the president, immigration has proven a tricky spot for Republicans after federal agents shot and killed two American citizens in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Though Trump’s base continues to voice support for the president’s deportation agenda, polls show a rising majority of Americans believe that Trump’s policies have gone too far.
The Department of Homeland Security has been shut down for nearly two weeks, as Democratic lawmakers have refused to fund the department to rebuke Trump’s immigration policies.
However, Trump did push the “softer” immigration touch he’s alluded to in recent weeks, instead calling for the “immediate” restoration of DHS funding.
“One of the great things about the State of the Union is how it gives Americans the chance to see clearly what their representatives really believe. So tonight, I’m inviting every legislature to join with my administration in reaffirming a fundamental principle. If you agree with this statement, then stand up and show your support,” Trump declared, earning a lengthy ovation from Republicans.
And a select number of Democrats, including Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), took the bait, keeping their seats and yelling at the president.
“You should be ashamed of yourself,” Trump shot back, earning raucous cheers from GOP members.
The president proceeded to call for the passage of the “Delilah Law,” a proposal barring states from granting commercial driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants, and the “SAVE Act,” a bill requiring states to administer voter identification requirements.
‘These people are crazy’
Trump, in his three previous States of the Union and two other joint addresses to Congress, has slowly perfected the art of baiting Democrats into cutting campaign ads for Republicans.
The president put that skill on display multiple times on Tuesday, on top of the immigration exchange with Omar.
“These people are crazy, I’m telling you. They’re crazy,” he offered when Democrats declined to stand during his section, vowing to fight states from allowing minors to transition their gender.
“How do you not stand? How do you not stand?” he shot at Democrats who did not cheer following his exchange with Iryna Zarutska, a Ukrainian immigrant killed in North Carolina by a multiple-time offender.
“Did Nancy Pelosi stand up?” Trump additionally joked after his call for Congress to pass legislation ensuring that “members of Congress cannot corruptly profit from using insider information” to trade stocks.
President of peace?
As he frequently does, Trump again on Tuesday claimed to have ended “eight wars” during his first year back in office.
The president thanked special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law, for negotiating the ongoing peace process in Gaza while predicting that Secretary of State Marco Rubio “will go down as the best” diplomat in the nation’s history.
Still, the president had few words Tuesday, the fourth-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, on ending that specific conflict, a “ninth war” ended on his watch.
“25,000 soldiers are dying each and every month. Think of that,” he continued. “A war which would have never happened if I were president.”
On the other hand, Trump had much more to say about a brewing conflict with Iran. The Trump administration has rapidly built up the largest American military presence in the Middle East in recent weeks as the president seeks to pressure Tehran into signing a new nuclear treaty.
“They were warned to make no future attempts to rebuild their weapons program, in particular, nuclear weapons. Yet they continue starting it all over,” Trump said, referencing Operation Midnight Hammer, a series of airstrikes on Iranian nuclear industry targets last year. “We are in negotiations with them. They want to make a deal, but we haven’t heard those secret words. We will never have a nuclear weapon.”
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“My preference is to solve this problem through diplomacy, but one thing is certain: I will never allow the world’s No. 1 sponsor of terror, which they are by far, to have a nuclear weapon. Can’t let that happen,” he stated. “No nation should ever doubt America’s resolve. We have the most powerful military on Earth.”