What to know about Trump's speech
- President Donald Trump proclaimed "wokeness" dead during his first joint speech to Congress since he began his second term. In the speech, he touted the tariffs he imposed on Canada, Mexico and China this week even as he acknowledged that Americans might feel "a little disturbance."
- He also defended his handling of the Russia-Ukraine conflict after his contentious meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy last week. The speech was the longest ever of its kind.
- Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, was escorted out of the chamber by the sergeant-at-arms after House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., warned against disrupting the speech. Several other Democrats walked out at various points.
- Sen. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan delivered the Democrats' response, accusing Trump of pursuing an "unprecedented giveaway to his billionaire friends" and saying President Ronald Reagan would be "rolling in his grave" over Trump's stance on Russia.
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Johnson says he will 'absolutely' bring forth a censure resolution against Rep. Al Green
House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters that he will “absolutely” bring forth any censure resolution made against Rep. Al Green on the floor. The conservative House Freedom Caucus vowed earlier in the day to try to censure any Democrat who interrupted Trump's speech.
“He should be censured. It’s a spectacle that was not necessary. He’s made history in a terrible way, and I hope he enjoys it,” Johnson said. He said he is “quite certain” that “many” members will bring the censure resolution.
Trump thanks Supreme Court justices after speech
As he exited the House chamber after his speech, Trump stopped to shake the hands of several Supreme Court justices, telling them: "Thank you again. Thank you again. Won’t forget."
It's unclear exactly what Trump was thanking the justices for. In recent weeks his allies have often invoked last year's Supreme Court ruling that granted him immunity for official presidential acts to justify some of his executive orders and actions.
Maxwell Frost talks about why he walked out on Trump's speech
After he walked out of the House chamber during Trump’s speech wearing a shirt that read "No kings live here," Rep. Maxwell Frost, D-Fla., said he did so to show the American people their leaders understand “this is not a normal moment.”
Frost said in an interview with MSNBC that the message of the walkout was intended just as much for the president as it was for the media, arguing that the Trump administration’s broad cuts to government agencies are designed to free up money for tax breaks to a handful of billionaires.
Frost also said he wanted to be an example of organizing and resistance.
"I think it is important to make sure people know that the United States, our democracy, can break, we can lose it if we don't defend it," Frost said. "And fascism and authoritarians, they gain power when there is no opposition.
Rep. Don Bacon says standard of conduct at Trump address was 'embarrassing'
Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., weighed in on the behavior of his fellow lawmakers, telling NBC News that the “standard of conduct” gets worse every time the president addresses Congress.
“I’m not just blaming the Democrat side; we’ve had people screaming at Joe Biden. It’s not good — tonight was terrible,” Bacon said. “And, I mean, what’s it going to be like next year? And the following year? In my view, it was embarrassing.”
Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., delivered the Democratic response to Trump's speech. She criticized the administration, including several of Trump's policies, Musk and Trump's recent meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Speech showcases Trump 2.0 but keeps partisan tone
This is Trump 2.0 — a president with the wind at his back and a certain swagger that he didn’t have during his first term.
He blamed former President Joe Biden for a lot of the country’s ills at this moment, and he really mocked Democrats.
This was a very partisan speech in that respect.
Fact check: Trump says car plants are 'opening up all over the place'
Statement
“We’re going to have growth in the auto industry like nobody’s ever seen. Plants are opening up all over the place. Deals are being made, never seen. That’s a combination of the election win and tariffs. It’s a beautiful word, isn’t it, that, along with our other policies, will allow our auto industry to absolutely boom. It’s going to boom. Spoke to the majors today, all three, the top people, and they’re so excited. In fact, already, numerous car companies have announced that they will be building massive automobile plants in America, with Honda just announcing a new plant in Indiana, one of the largest anywhere in the world."
Verdict
This is mostly false.
Analysis
No automaker has announced a new plant since Trump took office and began instituting new tariffs. Reuters reported that Honda planned to produce 210,000 Civics in Indiana instead of Mexico, but the company has made not made a public announcement.
What's more, it's unclear whether Honda would expand its operations in Indiana, open a new plant or simply move production of the new Civic to the plant and reduce production of other vehicles there, too. Honda's Indiana plant produces as many as 250,000 vehicles annually.
Plus, Trump's move to impose a 25% tariff on all imports coming into the United States from Canada and Mexico could add thousands of dollars to the cost of each new vehicle.
Fact check: Trump says more children are being diagnosed with autism
Statement
“We’re going to have growth in the auto industry like nobody’s ever seen. Plants are opening up all over the place. Deals are being made, never seen. That’s a combination of the election win and tariffs. It’s a beautiful word, isn’t it, that, along with our other policies, will allow our auto industry to absolutely boom. It’s going to boom. Spoke to the majors today, all three, the top people, and they’re so excited. In fact, already, numerous car companies have announced that they will be building massive automobile plants in America, with Honda just announcing a new plant in Indiana, one of the largest anywhere in the world."
Verdict
This needs context.
Analysis
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, this ratio is correct. But this statistic is often used to justify opposition to vaccination.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has pointed to vaccines to explain the substantial rise in autism diagnoses in recent decades, which have ballooned from an estimated 1 in 150 children in 2000 to 1 in 36 today.
But the science is clear that vaccines don't cause autism.
Rather, research suggests that much of the increase is due to increasing awareness and screening for the condition, changing definitions of autism to include milder conditions on the spectrum that weren’t recognized in previous years and advances in diagnostic technology.
Finding the causes of autism is complicated, because it’s not a single disorder, scientists and experts have told NBC News. In addition, those scientists and experts have said they believe that people develop autistic traits because of a combination of genetic vulnerability and environmental exposures.
Slotkin: 'Reagan must be rolling in his grave' after Trump-Zelenskyy meeting
Slotkin said President Ronald Reagan "must be rolling in his grave" after "the spectacle that just took place in the Oval Office last week" when Trump clashed with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
"That scene in the Oval Office wasn't just a bad episode of reality TV. It summed up Trump's whole approach to the world," Slotkin said.
"As a Cold War kid, I'm thankful it was Reagan and not Trump in office in the 1980s. Trump would have lost us the Cold War," she added.
Fact check: Is Canada to blame for fentanyl crisis?
Trump blamed Canada and Mexico for the flow of fentanyl to the U.S.
Statement
“We’re going to have growth in the auto industry like nobody’s ever seen. Plants are opening up all over the place. Deals are being made, never seen. That’s a combination of the election win and tariffs. It’s a beautiful word, isn’t it, that, along with our other policies, will allow our auto industry to absolutely boom. It’s going to boom. Spoke to the majors today, all three, the top people, and they’re so excited. In fact, already, numerous car companies have announced that they will be building massive automobile plants in America, with Honda just announcing a new plant in Indiana, one of the largest anywhere in the world."
Analysis
While fentanyl comes across the border from Mexico in significant number, Canada is hardly to blame for the crisis. In the 2024 fiscal year, fentanyl seizures at the northern border were just 43 pounds, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data. Meanwhile, more than 21,000 pounds of fentanyl were seized at the southern border during the same time period.