Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 5, 2025
6 min readLast updated: January 25, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleTrump's speech to Congress declares 'America is Back', sparking protests. He discusses foreign policy shifts and economic plans.
By Bo Erickson, Steve Holland and Joseph Ax
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A triumphant President Donald Trump told Congress on Tuesday that "America is back" after he reshaped U.S. foreign policy, ignited a trade war and ousted tens of thousands of government workers in six tumultuous weeks since returning to power, drawing jeers from some Democrats who walked out in protest.
The primetime speech, his first to Congress since taking office on January 20, followed a second day of market turmoil after he imposed sweeping new tariffs against Mexico, Canada and China.
At 100 minutes, the speech was the longest presidential address to Congress in modern U.S. history, according to The American Presidency Project.
World leaders were watching Trump's speech closely, a day after he paused all military aid to Ukraine in a stark reversal of U.S. policy. The suspension followed an Oval Office blowup in which Trump angrily upbraided Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in front of TV cameras.
The pause in aid to Ukraine has threatened Kyiv's efforts to defend against Russia, which launched a full-scale invasion three years ago, and further rattled European leaders worried that Trump is moving the U.S. too far toward Moscow.
Trump devoted only a few minutes of his speech to foreign policy. He signaled a willingness to press ahead with a minerals deal with Ukrainethat was set aside after last week's disastrous White House meeting.
"Simultaneously, we've had serious discussions with Russia and have received strong signals that they are ready for peace," Trump said. "Wouldn't that be beautiful?"
And he repeated his promises - though without adding detail - to bring peace to the Middle East and expand the Abraham Accords, deals signed during his first term that established relations between Israel and some of its Arab neighbors.
While Trump has appeared to fault Ukraine for starting the war, a new Reuters/Ipsos poll found 70% of Americans - including two-thirds of Republicans - say Russia was more to blame.
Trump vowed to balance the federal budget, even as he urged lawmakers to enact a sweeping tax cut agenda that analysts say could add more than $5 trillion to the federal government's $36 trillion debt load. Congress needs to raise the nation's debt ceiling later this year or risk a devastating default.
The speech shared some of the hallmarks of Trump's campaign rallies. Trump repeatedly assailed his Democratic predecessor Joe Biden, attacked immigrant criminals as "savages" and promised to ban what he called "transgender ideology," all while peppering his remarks with exaggerated or false claims.
DEMOCRATIC PROTESTS
"To my fellow citizens, America is back," Trump began to a standing ovation from fellow Republicans. "Our country is on the verge of a comeback the likes of which the world has never witnessed, and perhaps will never witness again."
Democrats held up signs with messages like "No King!" and "This Is NOT Normal," and about half the Democrats had walked out by the end of the speech.
One Texas congressman, Al Green, was ordered removed after he refused to sit down.
Trump, a political brawler by nature, reveled in the disagreements.
"I look at the Democrats in front of me, and I realize there is absolutely nothing I can say to make them happy or to make them stand or smile or applaud," he said after Green's ejection.
The speech took place in the House of Representatives, where lawmakers huddled in fear for their lives four years ago while a mob of Trump supporters ransacked the Capitol in an unsuccessful effort to overturn Biden's 2020 victory over the then-incumbent Trump.
The lawmaker Democrats chose to give their rebuttal speech, moderate U.S. Senator Elissa Slotkin, invoked an iconic Republican president in criticizing Trump.
"As a Cold War kid, I'm thankful it was Reagan and not Trump in office in the 1980s. Trump would have lost us the Cold War," Slotkin, a former CIA analyst who won election in Michigan in November even as Trump carried her state, said, referring to President Ronald Reagan. "Donald Trump's actions suggest that, in his heart, he doesn’t believe we are an exceptional nation."
MORE TARIFFS COMING
Trump praised billionaire businessman Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency, which has downsized more than 100,000 federal workers, cut billions of dollars in foreign aid and shuttered entire agencies.
The president credited Musk with identifying "hundreds of billions of dollars of fraud," a claim that far exceeds even what the administration has claimed so far. Musk, seated in the gallery, received ovations from Republicans.
Trump reiterated his intention to impose additional reciprocal tariffs on April 2, a move that would likely roil financial markets even more.
"Other countries have used tariffs against us for decades, and now it's our turn to start using them against those other countries," he said.
On this point, many Republicans remained seated, a signal of how Trump's tariffs have divided his party.
Trump's 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada, two of the country's closest allies, and an additional 10% on Chinese imports deepened investor concerns about the economy. The Nasdaq Composite is down more than 9% from its record closing high on December 16.
Trump, who has often taken credit for market increases, did not mention this week's downturn. He also barely addressed stubbornly high costs, blaming Biden for the price of eggs and saying he would bring down inflation via increased energy production.
Just one in three Americans approve of Trump's handling of the cost of living, according to the Reuters/Ipsos poll, a potential danger sign amid worries his tariffs could increase inflation.
Trump called on Congress to pass a sweeping $4.5 trillion plan that would extend his 2017 tax cuts, tighten border security and fund massive deportations.
Trump noted that his administration had already launched a border crackdown, citing February's record-low total of 8,300 migrant arrests at the U.S.-Mexico border. Those arrests are often used as a proxy to estimate illegal crossings.
The Republican tax proposal calls for $2 trillion in spending reductions over a decade, with possible cuts to education, healthcare and other social services.
The nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates that Trump's full tax agenda, including elimination of taxes on tips, overtime pay and Social Security benefits, could cost between $5 trillion and $11.2 trillion over a decade.
(Reporting by Bo Erickson, Erin Banco, Gram Slattery, Andrea Shalal, Steve Holland and Gabriella BorterAdditional reporting by Nandita Bose, Kanishka Singh, Jasper Ward, Ted Hesson, Jason Lange, Richard Cowan, Trevor Hunnicutt and Tom WestbrookWriting by Joseph Ax and Steve HollandEditing by Colleen Jenkins, Scott Malone and Howard Goller)
Trump declared that 'America is back' and highlighted his administration's achievements in reshaping foreign policy and igniting a trade war.
Democrats protested during the speech, holding signs with messages like 'No King!' and many walked out before it ended.
Trump called for a sweeping tax cut agenda and vowed to balance the federal budget, despite concerns that his plans could increase the national debt.
Trump's tariffs on Mexico, Canada, and China deepened investor concerns, contributing to a downturn in the Nasdaq Composite index.
Trump paused military aid to Ukraine, which raised concerns about Kyiv's ability to defend against Russia's invasion and rattled European leaders.
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