Responses to Trump’s 2019 State of the Union

FEATURING ROSA CLEMENTE AND JODI JACOBSON – President Donald Trump gave his second State of the Union address on Tuesday. It was the third time he addressed a joint session of Congress. His address was delayed by a week because of the government shutdown.

Many Democratic female lawmakers wore white to the speech including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. The coordinated clothing was apparently a tribute to suffragettes and women’s rights.

Trump spoke at length, largely sticking to a script. He began by calling for an end to divisiveness, touted the “economic miracle” that he claims to have ushered in, and showcased the criminal justice reform act he championed. Then he pivoted to the topic that was expected to be the major focus of his State of the Union: his obsession with funding for a border wall. Trump did not declare a national emergency to obtain his funding without congressional approval as he hinted he might.

On foreign policy issues Trump also addressed the US Embassy in Israel, the crisis in Venezuela, a warming of ties with North Korea, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and his animosity toward Iran.

Rosa Clemente is a news correspondent for Rising Up With Sonali. She’s also a community organizer, 2008 Green Party Vice Presidential candidate, and currently a doctoral candidate in the W.E.B. DuBois Department of AfroAmerican Studies at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Jodi Jacobson, President and Editor in Chief of Rewire.News.