U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday night delivered the annual State of the Union address to Congress, his first since being sworn in as president a year ago.
In his remarks, the president called for a “new American moment” and said there has “never been a better time to start living the American dream.
He began the speech by recalling some of the events of the last year, including the hurricane in Houston and the shooting of Steve Scalise, who was shot in the hip during a Republican lawmakers' baseball practice in Virginia.
"Tonight, I call upon all of us to set aside our differences, to seek out common ground, and to summon the unity we need to deliver for the people we were elected to serve."
“Over the last year, the world has seen what we always knew: that no people on Earth are so fearless, or daring, or determined as Americans. If there is a mountain, we climb it. If there is a frontier, we cross it. If there is a challenge, we tame it. If there is an opportunity, we seize it.”
“So let us begin tonight by recognizing that the state of our union is strong because our people are strong, and together we are building a safe, strong and proud America,” declared Trump.
Recounting his achievements on the economic front in the past year, the president said, “Since the election, we have created 2.4 million new jobs, including 200,000 new jobs in manufacturing alone. After years of wage stagnation, we are finally seeing rising wages.”
“Unemployment claims have hit a 45-year low. And something I’m very proud of: African-American unemployment stands at the lowest rate ever recorded, and Hispanic American unemployment has also reached the lowest levels in history.”
“Small business confidence is at an all-time high. The stock market has smashed one record after another, gaining $8 trillion in value. That is great news for Americans’ 401k, retirement, pension, and college savings accounts.”
“And just as I promised the American people from this podium 11 months ago, we enacted the biggest tax cuts and reforms in American history.”
“This is our new American moment. There has never been a better time to start living the American dream,” said the president.
“So to every citizen watching at home tonight -- no matter where you have been, or where you come from, this is your time. If you work hard, if you believe in yourself, if you believe in America, then you can dream anything, you can be anything, and together, we can achieve absolutely anything.”
One of the key achievements Trump pointed out is in the field of trading.
“America has also finally turned the page on decades of unfair trade deals that sacrificed our prosperity and shipped away our companies, our jobs, and our wealth,” he said, adding, “The era of economic surrender is over. From now on, we expect trading relationships to be fair and more importantly reciprocal.”
“I am asking both parties to come together to give us the safe, fast, reliable, and modern infrastructure our economy needs and our people deserve,” continued Trump.
“Tonight, I am calling on the Congress to produce a bill that generates at least $1.5 trillion for the new infrastructure investment that our country so desperately needs.”
“Every federal dollar should be leveraged by partnering with State and local governments and, where appropriate, tapping into private sector investment -- to permanently fix the infrastructure deficit, and we can do it.”
He called for a change in immigration laws so that American immigration policy can finally enter the 21st century, outlining a new plan with four pillars.
The first pillar is “a path to citizenship for 1.8 million illegal immigrants who were brought here by their parents at a young age.”
The second would fully secure the border. “That means building a wall on the southern border, and it means hiring more heroes to keep our communities safe,” he explained.
The third pillar “ends the visa lottery -- a program that randomly hands out green cards without any regard for skill, merit, or the safety of our people.”
And finally, the fourth pillar “protects the nuclear family by ending chain migration. Under our plan, we focus on the immediate family by limiting sponsorships to spouses and minor children.”
Trump also noted the United States' achievements abroad, saying, “As we rebuild America's strength and confidence at home, we are also restoring our strength and standing abroad.”
“Last year I pledged that we would work with our allies to extinguish ISIS from the face of the earth. One year later, I'm proud to report that the coalition to defeat ISIS has liberated almost 100 percent of the territory once held by these killers in Iraq and Syria. But there is much more work to be done. We will continue our fight until ISIS is defeated,” he declared.
“Last month I recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel,” recalled Trump, who added that shortly thereafter, “dozens of countries voted in the United Nations General Assembly against America’s sovereign right to make this recognition. American taxpayers generously send those same countries billions of dollars in aid every year.”
As such, he called on Congress to ensure that “American foreign assistance dollars always serve American interests and always go to friends of America, not enemies.”
Regarding Iran, Trump mentioned the recent anti-government protests there and said, “When the people of Iran rose up against the crimes of their corrupt dictatorship, I did not stay silent. America stands with the people of Iran in their courageous struggle for freedom.”
“I am asking the Congress to address the fundamental flaws in the terrible Iran nuclear deal,” he added.
Trump concluded by saying: “As long as we are proud of who we are, and what we are fighting for, there is nothing we cannot achieve. As long as we have confidence in our values, faith in our citizens, and trust in our God, we will not fail.”
“Our families will thrive. Our people will prosper. And our Nation will forever be safe and strong and proud and mighty and free.”
“Thank you, and God bless America.”