President Donald Trump delivered a largely conciliatory speech during his State of the Union address Tuesday.
Trump called for Congress to accept a 1.5 trillion dollar investment plan, fix the U.S. immigration system and rebuild the U.S. military, while touting the broad economic success of 2017 and the demise of the Islamic State in his tenure as commander in chief.
“We have gone forward with a clear vision and a righteous mission — to make America great again for all Americans.”
Trump departed from his frequent spats with the media and the Democratic Party by coining a new phrase to describe the goals of his presidency beyond his signature campaign phrase — a “new American moment.”
The frequent calls for unity interspersed with patriotic messages channeled the famous rhetoric of former President Ronald Reagan.
“Freedom stands tall over one more monument: this one. This Capitol, this living monument to the American people. A people whose heroes live not only in the past, but all around us — defending hope, pride, and the American way.”
The president ended his speech with calls for bipartisanship saying, “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.”
The major policy proposals put forth to Congress were calls for a new infrastructure investment package and the acceptance of a new proposal to reform the U.S. immigration system. “Every Federal dollar should be leveraged by partnering with State and local governments and, where appropriate, tapping into private sector investment — to permanently fix the infrastructure deficit,” the president said of infrastructure.
Trump’s immigration package offers a pathway to citizenship for 1.8 million illegal immigrants brought to the U.S. as children in exchange for full funding for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, eliminating chain migration and an end to the diversity visa lottery program.
The president frequently pointed out guests of the First Lady throughout the speech including U.S. soldiers recognized for valor in combat, firefighters from California, ICE agents, parents who lost their children to MS-13 gang violence, and a North Korea defector.
