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Donald Trump delivered an exhausting 100-minute address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night at a contentious moment for his second presidency, with markets reeling from his introduction of 25 percent Canada and Mexico.
Vice President JD Vance was caught on a hot mic at one stage complaining to House Speaker Mike Johnson about Trump running long while Fox News anchor Brit Hume reacted afterwards by calling it “the most boisterous, the longest, the the most partisan speech I’ve ever heard a president give in this kind of setting.”
The president used the occasion to downplay the upheaval of his new trade war as a mere “disturbance”, to blame Joe Biden for inflated grocery prices and proclaim, “The days of rule by unelected bureaucrats are over,” drawing a round of ironic laughter.
Trump also praised Elon Musk and DOGE, issued fresh threats against Greenland and Panama and hailed the death of “wokeness.”
He also insisted he is working “tirelessly” to end the war in Ukraine and read part of a letter from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressing regret over their White House blow-up and saying he was ready to sign a minerals deal to secure peace.
Donald Trump doubles down on tariffs and DOGE cuts in speech to jubilant Republicans and protesting Democrats
Donald Trump delivered an exhausting 100-minute address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night at a contentious moment for his second presidency, with markets reeling from his introduction of 25 percent Canada and Mexico.
Vice President JD Vance was caught on a hot mic at one stage complaining to House Speaker Mike Johnson about Trump running long while Fox News anchor Brit Hume reacted afterwards by calling it “the most boisterous, the longest, the the most partisan speech I’ve ever heard a president give in this kind of setting.”
The president used the occasion to downplay the upheaval of his new trade war as a mere “disturbance”, to blame Joe Biden for inflated grocery prices and proclaim, “The days of rule by unelected bureaucrats are over,” drawing a round of ironic laughter.
Trump also praised Elon Musk and DOGE, issued fresh threats against Greenland and Panama and hailed the death of “wokeness.”
He also insisted he is working “tirelessly” to end the war in Ukraine and read part of a letter from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressing regret over their White House blow-up and saying he was ready to sign a minerals deal to secure peace.
Here’s our report on Trump’s big night from Andrew Feinberg and Eric Garcia.
Joe Sommerlad5 March 2025 09:10
Democrat forced out of chamber after protesting Trump speech to Congress
Oliver O’Connell5 March 2025 09:00
ANALYSIS: Trump vows to plant an American flag on Mars — but can’t crack egg prices
In the six weeks since Donald Trump has returned to the White House, he has empowered an angry billionaire to fire tens of thousands of people across multiple government departments, alienated historic allies in Europe and Canada, abandoned Ukraine in its defense against Russia’s invasion, and wiped out all stock market gains of the year with tariffs against America’s neighbors.
Or as the president himself called it in his first address to Congress of his second term, “nothing but swift and unrelenting action to usher in the greatest and most successful era in the history of our country.”
It’s a perk of the job that the president gets to write his own performance review, but even for a man not known for his modesty, this was a generous one.
Oliver O’Connell5 March 2025 08:40
Elissa Slotkin focuses on economy and national security in Democratic rebuttal to Trump address
Senator Elissa Slotkin made the jump from the House to the Senate earlier this year. On Tuesday night, she was the Democrats’ choice to deliver their response to President Donald Trump’s aggressive address to a joint session of Congress.
Oliver O’Connell5 March 2025 08:20
Trump doubles down on tariffs and DOGE cuts in speech to jubilant Republicans and protesting Democrats
A defiant Donald Trump used the first address to Congress of his second term in the White House to announce that he was pressing on with his controversial agenda of tariffs and dismantling the machinery of the federal government in a speech full of partisan red meat that was more like one of his signature political rallies than remarks usually delivered from the Capitol by previous presidents.
Oliver O’Connell5 March 2025 08:00
Full story: Trump reveals arrest of terror suspect linked to 2021 Kabul airport bombing that killed 13 US troops
Oliver O’Connell5 March 2025 07:30
Trump orders massive forest clearings to curb US reliance on foreign timber
President Donald Trump signed an executive order earlier this month ordering that large parcels of forest be chopped down to limit U.S. reliance on foreign timber days before he implemented tariffs on the country’s largest trading partners.
In the order titled “Immediate Expansion of American Timber Production” signed on March 1, Trump claimed the country has enough timber resources to meet domestic demand, but federal policies have barred their full utilization and made the U.S. dependent on foreign producers.
Michelle Del Rey has the story.
Oliver O’Connell5 March 2025 07:15
Australian foreign minister: Navigating ‘very different America’ under Trump
Donald Trump’s second presidency is proving even more disruptive than his first, Australia’s foreign minister Penny Wong said.
Wong, however, said she remained hopeful that Australia could secure an exemption from upcoming US tariffs on steel and aluminum.
Speaking at a business summit, she acknowledged the scale of change under Mr Trump’s administration but emphasized the strength of the US-Australia alliance despite some policy differences.
Maroosha Muzaffar reports.
Oliver O’Connell5 March 2025 07:00
Profile: Al Green, the Democrat removed during Trump’s speech
So who is the firebrand Democrat from The Lone Star state?
Mike Bedigan5 March 2025 06:50
Watch: ‘Trump would have lost us the Cold War,’ says Sen. Slotkin
Oliver O’Connell5 March 2025 06:40