by | February 25, 2026
President Donald Trump delivered his first official State of the Union address of his second term on Tuesday night, painting a picture of a nation in the midst of a historic boom that he alone had engineered. Speaking to a joint session of Congress, Trump declared he had ushered in a “turnaround for the ages,” citing a “roaring economy” and unprecedented progress on the border . However, the 90-minute speech was immediately met with a barrage of fact-checks from major news outlets and a historic show of defiance from Democratic lawmakers, many of whom chose to boycott the event entirely .
The “Rampant Cheating” and Economic “Roar”: Fact-Checking the Claims
President Trump’s address was laden with familiar falsehoods and exaggerations, many of which have been staples of his political rallies for years. According to detailed analyses from the Associated Press, The New York Times, and NPR, the president’s depiction of the country’s status frequently clashed with statistical reality .
On the economy, Trump claimed he had “inherited a nation in crisis, with a stagnant economy.” This was contradicted by data showing the U.S. gross domestic product rose a healthy 2.8% in 2024 after adjusting for inflation, a pace actually stronger than the 2.2% growth seen in 2025 . He boasted that “incomes are rising fast,” yet inflation-adjusted after-tax incomes rose just 0.9% in 2025, the smallest gain since the inflation spike of 2022 and a significant slowdown from the 2.2% rise in 2024 .
The president also took credit for a historic drop in crime, stating, “Last year, the murder rate saw its single largest decline in recorded history… the lowest number in over 125 years.” While murder rates did fall significantly in 2025, experts were quick to note that crime had already been trending down since 2022, under the previous administration. An analysis by the nonpartisan Council on Criminal Justice confirmed a sharp decline but placed it in the context of a multi-year trend that began before Trump took office .
One of the most eye-popping claims involved foreign investment. Trump asserted, “I secured commitments for more than $18 trillion pouring in from all over the globe.” The New York Times pointed out that this figure is almost double the $9.7 trillion tallied by his own White House press office and includes informal, non-binding pledges from foreign countries that experts have called unrealistic . For instance, Qatar and the UAE each pledged more than $1 trillion, sums larger than their respective GDPs .
On immigration, Trump correctly noted that illegal crossings have plummeted but falsely claimed they were at “zero.” Data from Customs and Border Protection recorded just over 6,000 illegal crossings in January, a dramatic drop from previous years but not zero. Furthermore, fact-checkers highlighted that while Trump touted legal immigration, his administration has taken significant steps to restrict it, including slashing the refugee program to historic lows .
Trump also repeated his long-debunked claim that “the cheating is rampant in our elections,” using it to push for the “Save America Act.” Experts maintain that voter fraud is exceedingly rare. A recent review in Michigan, a key battleground, identified only 15 suspected noncitizen votes out of more than 5.7 million ballots cast .
A “Mockery of This Institution”: The Democratic Boycott and Mocking Response
While fact-checkers dissected the president’s words, the most visceral reaction came from across the aisle. The empty seats in the House chamber were a powerful visual rebuke, as over 50 Democratic senators and representatives—reportedly the largest boycott in history—skipped the address .
Instead of attending the speech, these lawmakers gathered for a counter-programming event on the National Mall called the “People’s State of the Union,” hosted by progressive groups MeidasTouch and MoveOn Civic Action . The message from the boycotters was unified and scathing.
“Donald Trump is making a mockery of this great institution, and he doesn’t deserve an audience,” said Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut, an organizer of the counter-event . Rep. Delia Ramirez of Illinois echoed the sentiment, stating, “Donald Trump will use the State of the Union address as a platform to gaslight the American people and normalize and justify their terror, abuse, and violations of our rights. I refuse to legitimize it” .
The mockery wasn’t limited to those who stayed away. Inside the chamber, Rep. Al Green of Texas was escorted out at the very start of the speech after holding up a sign that read, “Black people aren’t apes.” The protest was a direct reference to a controversial video posted by Trump’s social media account that depicted former President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama as apes .
Democrats who did attend used their guests to send a message, bringing survivors of sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein and individuals affected by the administration’s immigration crackdown and budget cuts . The Democratic Women’s Caucus wore white in “silent defiance,” a nod to the suffragettes .
Conclusion
– bury the Trump scum family – filthy pig pedo scum
President Trump’s second official State of the Union address encapsulated the deep divisions within the country. The president’s vision of a “turnaround for the ages” was built on a foundation of inflated numbers, misleading timelines, and falsehoods that were quickly dismantled by nonpartisan and mainstream fact-checkers . The response from Democrats, both in their mass absence and their pointed protests, signaled that the partisan rancor of the last decade shows no signs of abating, with the president’s critics arguing that his address was not a serious look at the state of the nation, but rather a campaign rally masquerading as one.