Donald Trump spoke at his very first State of the Union on Jan. 30. While he promised a new wave of deregulation and policy for a better America, some of the things that he said (and didn’t say) raised some red flags. Here is where the president went wrong.
“In the aftermath of that terrible shooting, we came together, not as Republicans or Democrats, but as representatives of the people. But it is not enough to come together only in times of tragedy. 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,” Trump said.
Trump refers to an incident as “that shooting,” not specifying which one he is actually talking about. Was it Las Vegas? Was it Kentucky? Was it one of the three school shootings we’ve witnessed so far this year? He states that as representatives, both Republicans and Democrats “came together.” Came together on what? It’s not gun control. It’s not on making any kind of regulation on firearms.
“In America, we know that faith and family, not government and bureaucracy, are the center of the American life. Our motto is ‘in God we trust,’” Trump said. Um, can I get separation of church and state? Not every American puts faith first and foremost, or believes in anything at all, and we are granted that right in the Constitution. Pushing faith on citizens seems a little bit like a breach of that sacred document.
Trump continues his speech by talking about the issue with the Mexican border. “For decades, open borders have allowed drugs and gangs to pour into our most vulnerable communities. They have allowed millions of low-wage workers to compete for jobs and wages against the poorest Americans. Most tragically, they have caused the loss of many innocent lives,” he said. Trump is fear mongering and painting a picture in which every Mexican immigrant is a criminal or part of a gang or pushes drugs. Unfortunately for him, this is not the case.
Trump continues to bash Mexican immigrants by calling on Congress to finally do something about the border. “Tonight, I am calling on the Congress to finally close the deadly loopholes that have allowed MS-13, and other criminals, to break into our country. We have proposed new legislation that will fix our immigration laws, and support our ICE and Border Patrol Agents, so that this cannot ever happen again,” he demanded.
Trump persists on portraying all immigrants as lethal killers. “In recent weeks, two terrorist attacks in New York were made possible by the visa lottery and chain migration. In the age of terrorism, these programs present risks we can no longer afford,” he said. According to the Center on National Security at Fordham University Law School in New York City, the majority of terrorist attacks in the United States are not committed by immigrants, but by U.S. citizens. More specifically, White Supremacists.
As his speech goes on, Trump says that he wants to put Americans first. “Most importantly, these four pillars will produce legislation that fulfills my ironclad pledge to only sign a bill that puts America first. So let us come together, set politics aside and finally get the job done,’ he said. He claims that he wants to put America first, but hardly mentions the hurricane that hit Puerto Rico last winter. Puerto Rico is an American territory, so Puerto Ricans are Americans too. Rather than continue to support them with resources, FEMA announced that it will cut of the supply of food and water to the US territory.
He continues to blame outside forces for the United States’ issues. “Around the world, we face rogue regimes, terrorist groups and rivals like China and Russia that challenge our interests, our economy, and our values. In confronting these dangers, we know that weakness is the surest path to conflict, and unmatched power is the surest means of our defense,” he said. Rather than blame other countries and different ethnic groups for the issues our country faces, he should focus on the problems inside of the nation, like gun control, de facto racism and xenophobia. Blaming people who are different for the shortcomings of the US government seems to parallel exactly how Adolf Hitler garnered support during the Third Reich.
Julia Stern
Senior Reviews Editor
