2020: The Great State of the Union
“I say to the people of our great country and to the members of Congress: The state of our Union is stronger than ever before.”
President Donald Trump delivered his third State of the Union remarks Tuesday evening, which you can read in full here or view here. Your Patriot team, near and far, watched the delivery, and agreed it was the best speech of President Trump’s tenure.
As in past years, he honored a remarkable range of guests in the gallery. Most moving in our view was Tuskegee Airman Charles McGee, who just celebrated his 100th birthday and was designated Brigadier General by the President earlier in the day. And Rush Limbaugh, the nation’s most influential conservative pathfinder, who announced this week that he has stage four lung cancer, was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom as presented by the First Lady.
Despite the fact that the President’s remarks were about achievements we should all applaud, one could not avoid the scowling face of Speaker Nancy Pelosi behind the podium. She, like her minions on the floor, found little to applaud. It was a remarkable visual testament to the fact that the Democrat Party has nothing to offer but a “Hate Trump” platform, fomenting anger and fear in order to do what they do best — systematically divide and disunite our nation. (More on Pelosi in the epilogue.)
Of course, Senate Democrats delayed the President’s impeachment acquittal vote until today — ensuring his remarks were delivered while under that cloud. However, the President did not mention a word about that disgraceful political charade, which actually spoke volumes.
What follows are the remarks we think best exemplify the accomplishments of President Trump’s administration since his election. Worth reading are his opening and closing remarks, bookending highlights of what he covered during the speech. His bookend observations exemplify what his administration and the American people have accomplished in just a few years — and what is yet to be accomplished.
President Trump:
“Three years ago, we launched the great American comeback. Tonight, I stand before you to share the incredible results. Jobs are booming, incomes are soaring, poverty is plummeting, crime is falling, confidence is surging, and our country is thriving and highly respected again. America’s enemies are on the run, America’s fortunes are on the rise, and America’s future is blazing bright. The years of economic decay are over. The days of our country being used, taken advantage of, and even scorned by other nations are long behind us. Gone too are the broken promises, jobless recoveries, tired platitudes, and constant excuses for the depletion of American wealth, power, and prestige. In just three short years, we have shattered the mentality of American decline, and we have rejected the downsizing of America’s destiny. We have totally rejected the downsizing. We are moving forward at a pace that was unimaginable just a short time ago, and we are never, ever going back.
"I am thrilled to report to you tonight that our economy is the best it has ever been. Our military is completely rebuilt, with its power being unmatched anywhere in the world — and it’s not even close. Our borders are secure. Our families are flourishing. Our values are renewed. Our pride is restored. And for all of these reasons, I say to the people of our great country and to the members of Congress: The state of our Union is stronger than ever before.
"The vision I will lay out this evening demonstrates how we are building the world’s most prosperous and inclusive society — one where every citizen can join in America’s unparalleled success and where every community can take part in America’s extraordinary rise. From the instant I took office, I moved rapidly to revive the U.S. economy — slashing a record number of job-killing regulations, enacting historic and record-setting tax cuts, and fighting for fair and reciprocal trade agreements. Our agenda is relentlessly pro-worker, pro-family, pro-growth, and, most of all, pro-American. … We are advancing with unbridled optimism and lifting our citizens of every race, color, religion, and creed very, very high.
"Since my election, we have created seven million new jobs — five million more than government experts projected during the previous administration. The unemployment rate is the lowest in over half a century. And very incredibly, the average unemployment rate under my administration is lower than any administration in the history of our country. If we hadn’t reversed the failed economic policies of the previous administration, the world would not now be witnessing this great economic success. The unemployment rate for African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and Asian Americans has reached the lowest levels in history. African American youth unemployment has reached an all-time low. African American poverty has declined to the lowest rate ever recorded. The unemployment rate for women reached the lowest level in almost 70 years. And, last year, women filled 72% of all new jobs added. The veterans unemployment rate dropped to a record low. The unemployment rate for disabled Americans has reached an all-time low. Workers without a high-school diploma have achieved the lowest unemployment rate recorded in U.S. history. A record number of young Americans are now employed.
"Under the last administration, more than 10 million people were added to the food stamp rolls. Under my administration, seven million Americans have come off food stamps, and 10 million people have been lifted off of welfare. In eight years under the last administration, over 300,000 working-age people dropped out of the workforce. In just three years of my administration, 3.5 million people — working-age people — have joined the workforce.
"Since my election, the net worth of the bottom half of wage earners has increased by 47% — three times faster than the increase for the top 1%. After decades of flat and falling incomes, wages are rising fast — and, wonderfully, they are rising fastest for low-income workers, who have seen a 16% pay increase since my election. This is a blue-collar boom. Real median household income is now at the highest level ever recorded.
"Since my election, U.S. stock markets have soared 70%, adding more than $12 trillion to our nation’s wealth, transcending anything anyone believed was possible. This is a record. It is something that every country in the world is looking up to. They admire. Consumer confidence has just reached amazing new highs. All of those millions of people with 401(k)s and pensions are doing far better than they have ever done before with increases of 60, 70, 80, 90, and 100%, and even more.
"Jobs and investments are pouring into 9,000 previously neglected neighborhoods thanks to Opportunity Zones, a plan spearheaded by Senator Tim Scott as part of our great Republican tax cuts. In other words, wealthy people and companies are pouring money into poor neighborhoods or areas that haven’t seen investment in many decades, creating jobs, energy, and excitement. This is the first time that these deserving communities have seen anything like this. It’s all working.
"Thanks to our bold regulatory reduction campaign, the United States has become the number-one producer of oil and natural gas anywhere in the world, by far. With the tremendous progress we have made over the past three years, America is now energy independent, and energy jobs, like so many other elements of our country, are at a record high. We are doing numbers that no one would have thought possible just three years ago.
"Likewise, we are restoring our nation’s manufacturing might, even though predictions were, as you all know, that this could never, ever be done. After losing 60,000 factories under the previous two administrations, America has now gained 12,000 new factories under my administration, with thousands upon thousands of plants and factories being planned or being built. Companies are not leaving; they are coming back to the USA. The fact is that everybody wants to be where the action is, and the United States of America is indeed the place where the action is.”
After his opening remarks, the President did a masterful job of highlighting why America is great and how his administration policies have empowered the American people to restore that greatness — and we are going to make it greater. The administration selected a gallery full of people who illustrate American greatness, and the President highlighted many of his administration’s policies by weaving those successes and objectives together with the story of gallery guests, some of whom can be viewed here: SOTU Gallery Guests.
Those guests included: Juan Guaido, “the true and legitimate President of Venezuela.” Stephanie and Janiyah Davis from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where Janiyah is stuck in a failing school, though Trump is pushing for school choice to help her. Kelli and Gage Hake from Stillwater, Oklahoma, were there to represent Gold Star Families after Army Staff Sergeant Christopher Hake was killed while serving his second tour of duty in Iraq – by Iranian sponsored terrorists. To his family Trump assured, “The terrorist responsible for killing Sergeant Hake was Qasem Soleimani, who provided the deadly roadside bomb that took Chris’s life. … The U.S. military executed a flawless precision strike that killed Soleimani and terminated his evil reign of terror forever.” Jody Jones from Farmersville, California, lost his brother, who was brutally murdered by an illegal alien. Iain Lanphier from Scottsdale, Arizona, wants to join the Space Force, and he’s the great-grandson of Tuskegee Airman Charles McGee. Carl and Marsha Mueller from Prescott, Arizona, whose daughter Kayla, was tortured and murdered by jihadi Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. To her family Trump assured, “Today, the ISIS territorial caliphate has been 100 percent destroyed, and the founder and leader of ISIS — the bloodthirsty killer known as al-Baghdadi — is dead.” Deputy Chief Raul Ortiz from Del Rio, Texas, has helped protect America’s homeland for nearly three decades. Tony Rankins from Cincinnati, Ohio, served in the Army in Afghanistan. Due to PTSD, he became addicted to drugs and ended up losing his job, family, and home. He now works in an Opportunity Zone and has overcome addiction, rejoining his family. Robin and Ellie Schneider from Kansas City, Missouri — Ellie was born at 21 weeks, six days, and is one of the youngest premies to survive in the U.S. Amy Williams works full time for the Army and devotes hundreds of hours to helping military families, all while raising her two children as her husband — Sergeant First Class Townsend Williams — serves on his fourth deployment. The Williams Family, of Fort Bragg, North Carolina, was reunited at the Address.
Cue Democrats sitting on their hands, failing to acknowledge most of these grassroots Americans or the administration’s policies that have greatly benefited “Democrat” constituencies.
The President appealed to minorities, highlighting their contributions to America and offered to help them escape the generational entrapment of bad social policies. Again, cue Democrats sitting on their hands.
A few additional parts of Trump’s remarks our editors thought were noteworthy:
“Following NAFTA’s adoption, our nation lost one in four manufacturing jobs. Many politicians came and went, pledging to change or replace NAFTA … and then absolutely nothing happened. But unlike so many who came before me, I keep my promises. … Socialism destroys nations, but always remember: Freedom unifies the soul. … Members of Congress, we must never forget that the only victories that matter in Washington are victories that deliver for the American people. The people are the heart of our country, their dreams are the soul of our country, and their love is what powers and sustains our country. We must always remember that our job is to put America first. … No parents should be forced to send their child to a failing government school. … If forcing American taxpayers to provide unlimited free health care to illegal aliens sounds fair to you, then stand with the radical left. But if you believe that we should defend American patients and American seniors, then stand with me and pass legislation that would prohibit free government health care for illegal aliens. … We will never let socialism destroy American healthcare. … The United States of America should be a sanctuary for law-abiding Americans, not criminal aliens. … My administration is also defending religious liberty, and that includes the constitutional right to pray in public schools. … Working with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and his colleagues in the Senate, we have confirmed a record number of 187 new federal judges to uphold our Constitution as written. This includes two brilliant new Supreme Court justices, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh. … Just as we believe in the First Amendment, we also believe in another constitutional right that is under siege all across our country. So long as I am President, I will always protect your Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. … Our message to the terrorists is clear: You will never escape American justice. If you attack our citizens, you forfeit your life. … These are warfighters that we have, the best in the world, and they either want to fight to win, or not fight at all.”
Here are fact sheets with more details of the administration’s achievements and proposals:
The Great American Comeback Story
President Trump closed with these observations:
“As the world bears witness tonight, America is a land of heroes. This is a place where greatness is born, where destinies are forged, and where legends come to life. This is the home of Thomas Edison and Teddy Roosevelt, of many great generals including Washington, Pershing, Patton, and MacArthur. This is the home of Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass, Amelia Earhart, Harriet Tubman, the Wright Brothers, Neil Armstrong, and so many more. This is the country where children learn names like Wyatt Earp, Davy Crockett, and Annie Oakley. This is the place where the pilgrims landed at Plymouth and where Texas patriots made their last stand at the Alamo.”
“The American nation was carved out of the vast frontier by the toughest, strongest, fiercest, and most determined men and women ever to walk on the face of the Earth. Our ancestors braved the unknown; tamed the wilderness; settled the Wild West; lifted millions from poverty, disease, and hunger; vanquished tyranny and fascism; ushered the world to new heights of science and medicine; laid down the railroads, dug out the canals, raised up the skyscrapers. And, ladies and gentlemen, our ancestors built the most exceptional republic ever to exist in all of human history, and we are making it greater than ever before.”
“This is our glorious and magnificent inheritance. We are Americans. We are pioneers. We are the pathfinders. We settled the New World, we built the modern world, and we changed history forever by embracing the eternal truth that everyone is made equal by the hand of Almighty God. America is the place where anything can happen. America is the place where anyone can rise. And here, on this land, on this soil, on this continent, the most incredible dreams come true. This nation is our canvas, and this country is our masterpiece. We look at tomorrow and see unlimited frontiers just waiting to be explored. Our brightest discoveries are not yet known. Our most thrilling stories are not yet told. Our grandest journeys are not yet made. The American Age, the American Epic, the American adventure has only just begun.”
“Our spirit is still young, the sun is still rising, God’s grace is still shining, and, my fellow Americans, the best is yet to come. Thank you. God bless you. And God bless America.”
It was a great evening for President Trump, his administration, and the American people.
However, it was a terrible evening for Beltway Democrats, whose political fortunes depend on fomenting hate, fear, and division to keep their dependent constituents on the plantation.
But the final image from the evening starkly demonstrated the Left’s hatred of Trump and his grassroots American supporters, whom Demos loath. Nancy Pelosi took Trump’s speech and, page-by-page, ripped it apart. She bookended Trump’s speech with insults, deliberately omitting the traditional words of introduction, “Members of Congress, I have the high privilege and distinct honor of presenting to you the President of the United States,” and opting instead to just state, “Members of Congress, the President of the United States.” Then, after Trump’s conclusion, for all the world to see, Pelosi tore up what she called his “dirty” speech: “I tore it up. I was trying to find one page with truth on it. I couldn’t.” Notably, she shredded the names of great American Patriots on those pages, living and deceased, and the names of Americans in the gallery — and she denigrated each of them.
Will there be a reprimand? Remember Rep. Joe Wilson, who shouted “You Lie” during a 2009 address by Barack Obama? He was formally reprimanded by the House. Of course, there will be no such Pelosi reprimand for her much more egregious insult. Nor will there be any reprimand for Reps. Tim Ryan (D-OH), Bill Pascrell (D-NJ), Jim McGovern (D-MA) or Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), who also rudely walked out during the President’s remarks.
Will there be an arrest? For the record, the signed official State of the Union address was not Pelosi’s to destroy. According to 18 U.S.C. 2071: “Whoever, having the custody of any such record…willfully and unlawfully…mutilates, obliterates, falsifies, or destroys the same, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than three years, or both; and shall forfeit his office and be disqualified from holding any office under the United States.” Thus, her actions are in violation of 18 U.S.C. 2071 and the Presidential Records Act of 1978. Accordingly, I have initiated a criminal complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice.
Update As expected, President Trump was acquitted on both articles of impeachment. The Senate voted 52-48 to acquit the president of the abuse of power charge and 53-47 to acquit the president of the obstruction of Congress charge. Mitt Romney, of course, voted with the Democrats on the abuse of power charge. Remarkably, Doug Jones (D-AL) and Joe Manchin (D-WV) did not break ranks with Democrats, and will likely pay a political price in their respective states, which Trump carried by wide margins in 2016.
Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis
Pro Deo et Libertate — 1776
Join us in prayer for our Patriots in uniform and their families — Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen — standing in harm’s way, and for our nation’s First Responders. We also ask prayer for your Patriot team, that our mission would seed and encourage the Spirit of Liberty in the hearts and minds of our countrymen.
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