President Donald Trump delivered his second State of the Union address on February 5. He called on members of Congress from both parties to work with him “to achieve historic breakthroughs for all Americans. Millions of our fellow citizens are watching us now, gathered in this great chamber, hoping that we will govern not as two parties but as one nation.  The agenda I will lay out this evening is not a Republican agenda or a Democrat agenda.  It’s the agenda of the American people.”

 

He discussed his immigration plan, which includes “humanitarian assistance, more law enforcement, drug detection at our ports, closing loopholes that enable child smuggling, and plans for a new physical barrier, or wall, to secure the vast areas between our ports of entry.” Trump also discussed trade, infrastructure, drug pricing, healthcare, abortion, socialism, and Afghanistan, among other issues. He called on members of Congress to work with him to create “a new standard of living for the 21st century” and “reject the politics of revenge, resistance, and retribution, and embrace the boundless potential of cooperation, compromise, and the common good.”

 

Stacey Abrams, the Democratic candidate for governor of Georgia in 2018 and former Georgia House minority leader, delivered the Democratic response to Trump’s State of the Union address. Abrams is the first black woman to deliver a response to a president’s State of the Union speech. Abrams spoke about the government shutdown, gun safety measures, education, immigration, and voter suppression, among other issues. She concluded her speech by speaking directly about Trump, saying, “So even as I am very disappointed by the president’s approach to our problems -– I still don’t want him to fail. But we need him to tell the truth, and to respect his duties and the extraordinary diversity that defines America.” She then called for a “renewed commitment to social and economic justice.”