Trump says farmers will 'have to bear with me again' over tariffs
Trump told farmers that there "may be a little bit of an adjustment period" as he reaffirmed his plans to place sweeping tariffs on goods coming into the United States from around the world — a move that has already caused China and Canada to announce retaliatory tariffs on U.S. agriculture products.
Referring to tumbling sales of U.S. agriculture products to China during his first term, Trump said farmers "will probably have to bear with me again."
Trump said that ultimately farmers would benefit because he will be placing tariffs on agriculture products coming into the United States from other countries. The United States began imposing a 25% tariff today on all products coming into the country from Mexico, which is one of its largest suppliers of tomatoes, avocados, peppers and berries.
"Tariffs are about making America rich again and making America great again. And it's happening, and it will happen rather quickly," he said. "There'll be a little disturbance, but we're OK with that. It won't be much."
Trump says his administration 'already started' reclaiming the Panama Canal
Trump says his administration will be “reclaiming the Panama Canal,” adding that it has “already started doing it.”
“The Panama Canal was built by Americans, not for others, but others could use it. But it was built at tremendous cost of American blood,” Trump said.
Trump mentioned a deal made earlier today, in which the Hong Kong company CK Hutchison said it would sell its controlling stake in a unit that operates two ports on the Pacific and Atlantic sides of the canal to a consortium that includes the U.S. asset manager BlackRock.
Trump also addressed “the incredible people of Greenland,” saying that he supports the right to determine their own future and that they are welcome to join the United States.
“We need it really for international world security. And I think we’re going to get it one way or the other,” he said.
Trump says there is 'nobody better' than Kennedy to investigate autism
Trump praised Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as he spoke about autism in the United States, saying there’s “nobody better” than Kennedy, his recently confirmed health and human services secretary, to “figure out what’s going on.”
“You have the best to figure out what is going on. OK, Bobby, good luck. It’s a very important job,” Trump said.
Kennedy has long used anti-vaccine rhetoric and his platform to claim without evidence that early childhood vaccines cause autism. In 2018, Kennedy founded Children’s Health Defense, a nonprofit anti-vaccine group.
Pressed about the issue by Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., at his Senate confirmation hearing, Kennedy refused to plainly state that vaccines do not cause autism, despite decades of research dispelling any link.
Trump strikes campaign tone in going after Biden
A president’s speech to a joint session of Congress is a chance to offer a unifying message in divided times.
Trump, in his speech tonight, has eschewed that approach.
He called his predecessor, Joe Biden, “the worst president in American history.”
That’s the sort of rhetoric politicians use on the campaign trail, but Trump is no longer a candidate and won’t be on the ballot again. Neither will Biden, who dropped out of the 2024 race in favor of Kamala Harris.
Trump has long made his animus toward Biden known, but he used his platform tonight to once again demonize his erstwhile foe.
Eight years ago, upon succeeding Barack Obama, Trump struck a more generous tone. Speaking to a joint session of Congress in 2017, Trump criticized Obama’s health care overhaul but not Obama himself.
“I am here tonight to deliver a message of unity and strength, and it is a message deeply delivered from my heart,” Trump said on that day in 2017.
Numerous Democrats are walking out after Trump’s 'Pocahontas' taunt at Warren
Discussing the war in Ukraine, Trump taunted Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., by referring to her as "Pocahontas." Numerous Democrats walked out after that.
'Good luck, Marco': Trump says he wants U.S. control of the Panama Canal
During a section of his speech outlining why he wants the United States to regain control of the Panama Canal, Trump said, "We have [Secretary of State] Marco Rubio in charge."
"Good luck, Marco," Trump added, before joking, "Now we know who to blame if anything goes wrong."
He also complimented Rubio, saying, "Marco has been amazing, and he’s going to do a great job."
Trump asks Secret Service to make teen once diagnosed with brain cancer an honorary agent
Trump asked the Secret Service tonight to make a 13-year-old who was diagnosed with brain cancer an honorary Secret Service agent.
Trump said during his remarks that D.J. Daniel, who was in attendance, had always dreamed of becoming a police officer but was diagnosed in 2018 with brain cancer.
"Tonight, D.J., we’re going to do you the biggest honor of them all," Trump said, adding that he had asked Secret Service Director Sean Curran to make him an agent. Daniel was given a badge and received a hug from Curran.
Former Capitol Police officer blasts Trump for law enforcement comments
In a post on BlueSky, former Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn, who was involved in protecting the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, blasted Trump for claiming to support law enforcement officers in his speech.
"Dude says we have to take care of our law enforcement," Dunn wrote, adding: "F--- YOU!!! YOU A------ YOU PARDONED OUR ATTACKERS."
Dunn was referring to one of Trump's first moves in his second term, pardoning roughly 1,500 defendants who were involved in the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol.
Since the attack, Dunn has become an outspoken critic of Trump, and he even ran for Congress as a Democrat last year. He now runs a group dedicated to supporting candidates running against pro-Trump Republicans.
Trump pledges to place reciprocal tariffs on other countries
Trump pledged to place reciprocal tariffs on countries that apply them to the United States.
Fact check: Trump says many migrants who entered the country the past four years were criminals
Verdict
This is misleading.
Analysis
According to Customs and Border Protection data, the Biden administration had more than an estimated 14 million migrant encounters at and between ports of entry at U.S. borders.
More than 118,000 migrants with criminal backgrounds were apprehended at U.S. borders during that time — a small part of the more than over 14 million migrant encounters. There have been instances of migrants found to have criminal records from their home countries after they’ve entered the United States, but there is no evidence to support that it is widespread, and immigration officials have long cited challenges with getting criminal records from certain migrants’ home countries before they cross the border.
The Trump administration has frequently cited the presence of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua in the United States and the high-profile killing of the Georgia nursing student Laken Riley last year by a Venezuelan national who entered the country illegally in 2022 as indicative of widespread migrant crime.