U.S. President Donald Trump’s State of the Union speech ran for 82 minutes on Tuesday, and tackled a range of issues from drug prices to cartels, and foreign policies from Afghanistan to Venezuela.
There were many viral moments – for example, the cheering congresswomen all wearing white, Nancy Pelosi clapping pointedly, and children sleeping through the speech – but the address is a chance to look at what the U.S. government aims to tackle in the coming year.
Here are a few key takeaways from the speech:
Unity and divisiveness
WATCH ABOVE: Trump asks Congress to ‘choose greatness’
“The agenda I will lay out this evening is not a Republican agenda or a Democrat agenda. It is the agenda of the American people,” Trump said Tuesday night.
“Victory is not winning for our party, victory is winning for our country.”
The sentiment was a change in pace from Trump’s normal rhetoric, which included mocking Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer hours before his speech.
Many pointed out after the fact that Trump has refused to compromise, noting his refusal to compromise with Democrats which led to the recent partial government shutdown.
Later on in the speech, Trump pointed out many issues where the parties have clashed, and refused to budge on major issues.
No change over border wall talk, same as last year
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One of those issues was illegal immigration and border security.
The points touched on in his speech were the same as he’s talked about for months – reiterating his point that there is a lot of crime associated with immigration, and that “walls work” to reduce crime.
FACT CHECK: Trump crime statistics don’t match official ones in State of the Union address
Wary of publicly highlighting the party divisions, Trump made no mention of an emergency declaration in his remarks, which he has been threatening to do.
He did offer a lengthy defence of his call for a border wall, declaring: “I will build it.” But he delivered no ultimatums about what it would take for him to sign legislation to keep the government open.
Rails against socialism
WATCH ABOVE: Trump rails against Socialism, says America will ‘never be a Socialist country’
Trump also made mention of “new calls to adopt socialism in our country.”
Eleven new congresspeople, including New York’s Alexandria Oscasio-Cortez, are backed by the Democratic Socialists of America.
Ocasio-Cortez has talked about pushing a 70 per cent tax on personal incomes over $10 million and other controversial policies.
“America was founded on liberty and independence and not government coercion, domination and control,” Trump said. “Tonight, we renew our resolve that America will never be a socialist country.”
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He also tackled the socialist regime in Venezuela, whose political turmoil has made international headlines.
“We condemn the brutality of the Maduro regime, whose socialist policies have turned that nation from being the wealthiest in South America into a state of abject poverty and despair,” he said.
What he didn’t talk about: Fake news and climate change
Notable policy absences from his speech include climate change, which many have said are the major issues the world is facing.
The World Economic Forum’s survey of global risks listed climate change as a main concern, and officials say the U.S.-based Doomsday clock remains at a precarious position due to climate change and fake news.
The Trump administration has rolled back Obama-era rules aimed to limit climate change.
Other notable absences from the speech were fake news and cyberattacks – both of which have seen a rise in the world in the past years.
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