What's notable about Trump's speech to Congress?

US President Donald Trump just gave his first speech to Congress in his second term, with a record length of 1 hour and 40 minutes.

In his speech on the evening of March 4 (local time, morning of March 5 Vietnam time) before the US Congress, President Trump reviewed many of the administration's policies since the beginning of his term and upcoming plans. Below are some of the main points he mentioned.

President Donald Trump speaks at Congress on March 4

Economy

President Trump said his priority was to "rescue" the US economy and working families, saying he had inherited from his predecessor "an economic disaster and an inflationary nightmare".

While post-Covid-19 inflation was high globally under the previous administration, the US enjoyed the world’s strongest economic recovery at the end of President Joe Biden’s term, with booming stock markets, falling inflation and job creation, according to a Guardian check. Since Trump took office and imposed tariffs on trading partners, the stock market has plummeted and the government has laid off tens of thousands of federal workers.

Mr. Trump proposed making permanent tax cuts from his first term and passing legislation eliminating taxes on tips and overtime.

He declared that for the first time in modern history, more Americans believe the country is on the right track than believe the opposite.

The claim is said to be based on a poll by the right-leaning Rasmussen firm taken three weeks ago, which found 47% of people saying the country is on the right track compared to 46% who said it is on the wrong track. The same Rasmussen poll taken this week found 50% saying the US is on the wrong track while only 45% said it is on the right track. Several other recent polls have shown similar results.

Tariffs

President Trump announced that he will impose reciprocal tariffs on US trading partners from April 2.

The leader said the United States has been “ripped off for decades.” “We’re not going to let that happen again,” he said. He claimed the tariffs would raise trillions of dollars and create jobs “like we’ve never seen before.” In reality, the tariffs are being paid by American importers, not foreign exporters. Analysts say the real losers from the tariffs may also be American consumers.

“Other countries have been using tariffs on us for decades, and now it’s our turn to start using them. Whatever they tax us, we tax them back,” he said.

President Trump dismissed the criticism, admitting that “there may be a little bit of turmoil” and “there may be a period of adjustment,” but ultimately the tariffs will bring prosperity by forcing companies to produce more in the United States, creating jobs and opportunities.

DOGE and Elon Musk

Praising billionaire Elon Musk and the newly formed Office of Government Efficiency (DOGE), President Trump said that “everyone here” appreciates the efforts of the new agency, including Democrats.

He also said Mr. Musk is the head of DOGE. As his administration continues to restructure the federal workforce, President Trump warned that if civil servants oppose his administration’s policies, they will be fired.

President Trump claimed that DOGE has “found hundreds of billions of dollars” in waste. However, CNN said that number has not been verified and needs context.

Accordingly, as of the day of Mr. Trump's speech to Congress, DOGE claimed on its website that its work had saved taxpayers about $105 billion. However, it has not provided evidence to verify such a high figure.

In fact, DOGE's public metrics have been flawed and have been continuously changed in recent weeks to remove some contracts that were identified as flawed.

Foreign affairs

In his speech, President Trump vowed to "reclaim" control of the Panama Canal and reaffirmed his desire to control Greenland.

After a tense meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in front of the media last week, Mr. Trump said the Ukrainian president had sent him a letter saying he was ready to negotiate and sign a mineral deal. He also said he would take “historic action to expand production of critical minerals and rare earths” in the United States later this week.

Regarding the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Mr. Trump said that Russian President Vladimir Putin was motivated to launch an operation in Ukraine after observing how the Biden administration handled the US withdrawal from Afghanistan.

On the other hand, Mr. Trump also declared that the US has given 350 billion USD to Ukraine since the conflict began in 2022 while Europe has only spent 100 billion USD.

According to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, a German think tank that closely tracks wartime aid to Ukraine, as of December 2024, Europe (the European Union plus non-EU European countries) has pledged a total of about $263 billion in military, financial, and humanitarian aid to Ukraine at current exchange rates, while the U.S. pledge is about $126 billion. Europe has also allocated more military, financial, and humanitarian aid (about $140 billion) than the U.S. (about $121 billion).

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/co-gi-dang-chu-y-trong-bai-phat-bieu-cua-ong-trump-tai-quoc-hoi-185250305122944403.htm