In the evening of March 4, President Donald Trump addressed a joint session of Congress for the first time of his second presidency. After declaring the beginning of the United States’ “golden age” at his inauguration, he focused his congressional address on what he believes to be the “renewal of the American Dream.”

Although this speech was formatted in the exact manner of a State of the Union address, it did not officially carry that title, as presidents typically do not deliver such remarks in the first year of their presidency.

President Trump began his speech by highlighting the early work of his second administration and declaring that his actions are creating a renewed sentiment of patriotism across the nation.

“We have accomplished more in 43 days than most administrations accomplished in four or eight years, and we are just getting started,” the president said. “Our spirit is back, our pride is back, our confidence is back, and the American Dream is surging bigger and better than ever before.”

He continued by invoking his recent election victory and praising statistics showing increased confidence in the national direction.

“The presidential election of Nov. 5 was a mandate like has not been seen in many decades,” Trump said. “Now, for the first time in modern history, more Americans believe that our country is headed in the right direction than the wrong direction. In fact, it’s an astonishing record, 27-point-swing, the most ever.”

Those remarks prompted a live response from Representative Al Green, a Democrat of Texas. The congressman arose from his seat and hoisted his cane while rebuffing that Trump planned to propose cuts to multiple federal programs.

Green’s actions prompted Speaker Mike Johnson to order the Sergeant at Arms of the House to remove the representative from the chamber, and Green later addressed the incident.

“I’ll accept the punishment,” the congressman said. “It’s worth it to let people know that there’s some of us who are going to stand up against this president’s desire to cut Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security.”

After President Trump was permitted to continue, he addressed his administration’s response to the sharp increase in border crossings that occurred in recent years and compared his record to that of his predecessor.

“As a result, illegal border crossings last month were by far the lowest recorded ever. They heard my words and they chose not to come […],” he said. “In comparison, under Joe Biden, the worst president in American history, there were hundreds of thousands of border crossings a month […].”

Trump then addressed his ambition to change the structure of the federal government through sharp decreases in spending and regulations, changes he claims will place more money in the hands of the American people.

“Every day, my administration is fighting to deliver the change America needs to bring a future that America deserves, and we’re doing it,” Trump said. “Upon taking office, I imposed an immediate freeze on all federal hiring, a freeze on all federal regulations, and a freeze on all foreign aid.”

In the wake of recent mass firings of federal employees by his administration, Trump asserted his anti-diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) doctrine for government hirings.

“We believe that whether you are a doctor, an accountant, a lawyer or an air traffic controller, you should be hired and promoted based on skill and competence, not race or gender,” the president said.

The President further attacked DEI by highlighting a list of executive orders he signed restricting the implementation of those policies across education, the federal government, and athletics.

“We have removed the poison of critical race theory from our public schools, and I signed an order making it the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders, male and female. I also signed an executive order to ban men from playing in women’s sports,” Trump said.

The president then illustrated his ambition for a more expansive use of natural resources to lower energy prices, including nonrenewables.

“As you’ve heard me say many times, we have more liquid gold under our feet than any nation on earth and by far, and now I fully authorize the most talented team ever assembled to go and get it,” Trump said. “It’s called drill, baby, drill.”

Furthermore, echoing his first presidency, Trump asked Congress to pass another wave of tax cuts in order to rectify the impact of inflation, broadly similar to those enacted in 2017.

“The next phase of our plan to deliver the greatest economy in history is for this Congress to pass tax cuts for everybody,” the president said. “We had tremendous success in our first term with [them]. We’re seeking permanent income tax cuts all across the board and to get urgently needed relief to Americans hit especially hard by inflation.”

Continuing in his economic message, President Trump doubled down on his plans for heavy tariffs on foreign nations as a means to increase manufacturing within the United States.

“If you don’t make your product in America, […], you will pay a tariff,” Trump said. “Whatever [foreign countries] tariff [the United States], we will tariff them.”

Also in foreign policy, Trump announced a new plan to increase Navy shipbuilding as a means of increasing national security and the overall economy.

“To boost our defense industrial base, we are […] going to resurrect the American shipbuilding industry including commercial shipbuilding and military shipbuilding,” he said. “I am announcing tonight that we will create a new office of shipbuilding in The White House and offer special tax incentives to bring this industry home to America, where it belongs.”

After a record-setting-100-minute-long address, President Trump concluded by once again invoking the spirit of patriotism and proclaiming a period of prosperity for the nation.

“Every single day. We will stand up and we will fight, fight, fight for the country our citizens believe in and for the country people deserve,” the president said. “My fellow Americans, get ready. for an incredible future, because the golden age of America has only just begun.”

Shortly after the end of Trump’s remarks, Democratic Senator Elissa Slotkin of Michigan delivered her party’s response to the president’s address.

She attacked President Trump for what she believes to be irresponsible actions and, in contrast, laid out her own doctrine for the future of the country.

“America wants change. But there is a responsible way to make change, and a reckless way. We can make that change without forgetting who we are as a country, and as a democracy.” Slotkin said. “The Middle Class is the engine of our country, strong national security protects us from harm, and our democracy, no matter how messy, is unparalleled and worth fighting for.”

Moreover, Senator Slotkin presented her economic priorities for the middle class, advocating for improved job creation and a more fair tax system.

“We need to bring down the price of things we spend the most money on: Groceries, housing, healthcare, your car. We need to make more things in America with good-paying, union jobs and bring our supply chains back home from places like China,” the senator said. “We need to give American businesses the certainty they need to invest and create the jobs of the future. And we need a tax system that’s fair for people who don’t happen to make a billion dollars.”

She then attacked President Trump’s proposals as overly favorable to the richest Americans and unfavorable to the middle class.

“President Trump is trying to deliver an unprecedented giveaway to his billionaire friends, […] and to do that, he’s going to make you pay in every part of your life. Grocery and home prices are going up, not down — and he hasn’t laid out a credible plan to deal with either,” Slotkin said. “If he’s not careful, he could walk us right into a recession.”

Then, in response to Trump’s hard-line immigration policies, Slotkin proposed a solution focused on systemic reform rather than deportations.

“Securing the border without actually fixing our broken immigration system is dealing with the symptom not the disease,” she said. “We need a functional system, keyed to the needs of our economy, that allows vetted people to come and work here legally.”

Slotkin took particular aim at the president’s foreign policy, characterizing it as dangerous and contradictory to American values and history, particularly with regards to Trump’s recent meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

“[The Zelenskyy] scene in the Oval Office wasn’t just a bad episode of reality TV. It summed up Trump’s whole approach to the world. He believes in cozying up to dictators like Vladimir Putin and kicking our friends, like Canada, in the teeth,” the senator said. “As a Cold War kid, I’m thankful it was [Ronald] Reagan and not Trump in office in the 1980s. Trump would have lost us the Cold War.”

With Trump’s recent actions and future proposals as context, Slotkin persuaded viewers to remain civically engaged in order to preserve democracy and hold leaders accountable for their actions.

“Don’t tune out. It’s easy to be exhausted, but America needs you now more than ever. If previous generations had not fought for democracy, where would we be today? Hold your elected officials, including me, accountable. Watch how they’re voting. Go to town halls and demand they take action,” Slotkin said. “Pick just one issue you’re passionate about — and engage. Join a group that cares about your issue, and act. And if you can’t find one, start one.”

In closing, Slotkin invoked American history as the best example of how citizens should respond when they fervently disagree with the path their nation is taking.

“I’m a student of history, and we’ve gone through periods of political instability before. And ultimately, we’ve chosen to keep changing this country for the better,” she said. “But every single time, we’ve only gotten through those moments because of two things: Engaged citizens and principled leaders.”