Trump’s 2026 State of the Union speech: Latest updates and highlights | EUROtoday

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Top 10 most notable moments from Donald Trump’s State of the Union

Fallout over President Donald Trump’s State of the Union deal with continued Wednesday, with critics blasting the speech as “one big lie” and a “slap in the face of the millions of Americans.”

Trump broke the document for the longest-ever State of the Union deal with Tuesday night time as he boasted about delivering a brand new age of prosperity for Americans and repeating his well-worn catchphrase that the U.S. is the “the hottest country” on this planet proper now.

During the one hour and 48-minute speech,Trump advised Democrats they need to be “ashamed” of themselves as many refused to face, whereas some left the chamber altogether.

Critics blasted Trump within the wake of his remarks. Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger, who supplied the Democratic rebuttal, accused Trump of “unprecedented corruption” and requested voters: “Is this president working for you?”

“If he was Pinocchio, his nose would stretch across the entire length of the floor of the Congress this evening,” Democratic Senator Ed Markey mentioned. “It’s one big lie, a made for TV spectacle, a bogus sales pitch and a slap in the face of the millions of Americans who are living through their struggles.”

But Democrats did not get off calmly, both, with late present host Stephen Colbert, describing their “silent defiance” method as “a bold rebrand of doing jack squat.”

Mike Johnson got here ‘this shut’ to ejecting Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib from SOTU

House Speaker Mike Johnson says he got here “this close” to ejecting Democrat congresswomen Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib throughout Donald Trump’s State of the Union deal with, following their verbal protests.

Omar shouted a number of instances that Trump had “killed Americans” after the president singled Democrats out for not standing to applaud his efforts on immigration enforcement.

Speaking to Fox News’ Sean Hannity, Johnson mentioned the remarks have been “shameful.”

“I came this close to stopping them. We could have probably ejected them from the floor. I thought, let their actions speak for themselves,” he mentioned. “If they’d gone a step further, I probably would have ejected them.”

Mike Bedigan25 February 2026 18:13

Fact test: Donald Trump’s SOTU statements on immigration

The Independent has fact‑checked Donald Trump’s State of the Union statements in certain areas and compared them with available data, revealing a more nuanced picture than the speech suggested.

“After four years, in which millions and millions of illegal aliens poured across our borders totally unvetted and unchecked, we now have the strongest and most secure border in American history by far. In the past nine months, zero illegal aliens have been admitted to the United States.”

President Trump is right {that a} document variety of migrants – within the thousands and thousands – crossed the border illegally in the course of the Biden administration, although many have been detained and later launched with court docket dates.

His administration’s crackdown on border crossings has since pushed these figures all the way down to ranges not seen in many years. However, claiming that “zero” individuals have illegally crossed into the U.S. within the final 9 months is extraordinarily unlikely.

Mike Bedigan25 February 2026 18:05

Fact test: Donald Trump’s SOTU statements on crime

The Independent has fact‑checked Donald Trump’s State of the Union statements in certain areas and compared them with available data, revealing a more nuanced picture than the speech suggested.

“Last year, the murder rate saw its single largest decline in recorded history,” Trump mentioned. “This is the biggest decline, think of it, in recorded history. The lowest number in over 125 years.”

America is getting safer. Data collected from 35 American cities confirmed a 21 per cent lower within the murder fee from 2024 to 2025, translating to about 922 fewer homicides final 12 months, in accordance with a January report from the unbiased Council on Criminal Justice.

The report indicated that the 2025 murder fee is projected to fall to roughly 4 deaths per 100,000 individuals – decrease than any degree beforehand recorded in legislation enforcement or public well being knowledge going again to 1900.

FBI annual studies additionally present that killings have been lowering steadily since 2022.

Mike Bedigan25 February 2026 18:00

Fact test: Donald Trump’s SOTU statements on ending eight wars

The Independent has fact‑checked Donald Trump’s State of the Union statements in certain areas and compared them with available data, revealing a more nuanced picture than the speech suggested.

On the ending of eight wars:

“Our country has never been stronger. My first 10 months I ended eight wars, including Cambodia. Isn’t it funny?” the president mentioned.

The State of the Union deal with was not the primary time Trump has made this declare; he beforehand declared that he deserves the Nobel Peace Prize for his involvement in eight worldwide conflicts since assuming workplace.

However, many of those disputes persist with out decision, and hostilities have reignited in a number of of the areas he engaged with.

Foreign coverage consultants have mentioned the president’s claims overstate his document and function in ending armed conflicts.

Mike Bedigan25 February 2026 17:55

Fact test: Donald Trump’s SOTU statements on tariffs

The Independent has fact‑checked Donald Trump’s State of the Union statements in certain areas and compared them with available data, revealing a more nuanced picture than the speech suggested.

“I believe the tariffs, paid for by foreign countries, will, like in the past, substantially replace the modern-day system of income tax, taking a great financial burden off the people that I love,” the president mentioned.

Tariffs are taxes on imported items. Companies importing overseas items pay the tax to the federal government, and lots of move some or all of that value on to clients – together with American customers and different U.S. companies. Some companies can also select to cut back their imports.

Democrats on the Joint Economic Committee estimated that President Trump’s tariffs value American households about $1,700 every between February 2025 and January 2026.

Mike Bedigan25 February 2026 17:50

Fact check: Donald Trump’s SOTU statements on inflation

The Independent has fact‑checked Donald Trump’s State of the Union statements in certain areas and compared them with available data, revealing a more nuanced picture than the speech suggested.

“In 12 months, I secured commitments for more than $18 trillion, pouring in from all over the globe,” Trump said.

“Think of it. Much lower than $1 trillion for 4 years versus far more than $18 trillion for one 12 months. What a distinction a president makes.”

This is incorrect information.

While investment has surged, even according to the U.S. government’s official records, the figure is around half what Trump claimed on Tuesday night.

The White House website states that U.S. and foreign investments total $9.7 trillion, “made attainable by President Trump’s management.” However, this definition is overstated, as investment has steadily recovered since the pandemic, and the figure also includes investments spurred by the Joe Biden administration.

Mike Bedigan25 February 2026 17:45

Fact check: Donald Trump’s SOTU statements on inflation

The Independent has fact‑checked Donald Trump’s State of the Union statements in certain areas and compared them with available data, revealing a more nuanced picture than the speech suggested.

“The roaring financial system is roaring like by no means earlier than,” the president said, adding: “My administration has driven core inflation down to the lowest level in more than five years.”

Core inflation – which excludes the more volatile food and energy categories – rose 2.5 per cent in January compared with a year earlier. That’s the lowest rate since March 2021, making it almost five years ago, not “greater than 5 years.”

Mike Bedigan25 February 2026 17:40

Stephen Colbert shreds high Democrat Hakeem Jeffries for ‘silent’ protest at State of the Union

Stephen Colbert lashed out at high Democrat Hakeem Jeffries for urging his occasion to have a “silent” protest and keep away from disrupting the State of the Union deal with, calling the transfer “a bold rebrand of doing jack squat.”

The Late Show host mocked the House minority chief’s encouragement for Democrats to both attend President Donald Trump’s deal with Tuesday night time “in silent defiance” or to go to a counter occasion, however to not bail totally or “make a scene” in the event that they did attend.

“We’re not going to Donald Trump’s house,” Jeffries mentioned final week. “He’s coming to our house. It’s my view that you don’t let anyone, ever, run you off of your block.”

Read extra from Isabel Keane right here:

Mike Bedigan25 February 2026 17:30

John Fetterman says fellow Democrats resolution to boycott SOTU is ‘disappointing’

Senator John Fetterman mentioned that the selection by a few of his Democratic colleagues to not attend Donald Trump’s State of the Union deal with Tuesday night time was “disappointing.”

“It’s just disappointing, honestly. I think that’s sad that I think half of my colleagues didn’t show up,” the Pennsylvania lawmaker told Fox News Wednesday.

“That’s not a judgement but for me … I think show up. You don’t have to clap for everything, you don’t have to agree with anything. I think we’re in a different place where it’s now… people aren’t even going to show up?”

Mike Bedigan25 February 2026 17:15

Ilhan Omar blasts Donald Trump for ‘killing two of my constituents’

Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar said that Donald trump should “be ashamed” after accusing him of killing “two of my constituents.”

During the president’s State of the Union address, Omar repeatedly called out “you have killed Americans,” in reference to the deaths caused by federal agents, including the high-profile cases of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis last month.

Her remarks came as Trump blasted the Democrats on hindering immigration enforcement efforts, including “blocking the removal of illegal criminal aliens.”

Mike Bedigan25 February 2026 17:00

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-state-of-the-union-speech-latest-updates-sotu-epstein-b2927136.html