Donald Trump’s full address to Congress

President Donald Trump gave his address to Congress in a joint session to present the actions he has taken in his first weeks in office and what he has planned for the next four years. As expected, Trump addressed a variety of issues, from his immigration policies to the impact Elon Musk has had with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). While the speech was interrupted several times by applause from the Republican side, the Democrats remained silent, except for Representative Al Green, who protested against the president, causing him to be removed from the room.

Below is the full speech delivered by Trump on the night of March 4:

“Members of the United States Congress, thank you very much. And to my fellow citizens, America is back. Six weeks ago, I stood beneath the dome of this Capitol and proclaimed the dawn of the Golden Age of America. From that moment on, it has been nothing but swift and unrelenting action to usher in the greatest and most successful era in the history of our country. We have accomplished more in 43 days than most administrations accomplished in four years or eight years, and we are just getting started.

I return to this chamber tonight to report that America’s momentum is back, our spirit is back, our pride is back, our confidence is back, and the American dream is surging bigger and better than ever before. The American dream is unstoppable, and our country is on the verge of a comeback, the likes of which the world has never witnessed and perhaps will never witness again. There’s never been anything like it.

The presidential election of November 5th was a mandate like has not been seen in many decades. We won all seven swing states, giving us an electoral college victory of 312 votes. We won the popular vote by big numbers. For the first time in history, more Americans believe that our country is headed in the right direction than the wrong direction. In fact, it’s an astonishing record — a 27-point swing, the most ever!

(Interruption)

Over the past six weeks, I have signed nearly 100 executive orders and taken more than 400 executive actions — a record — to restore common sense, safety, optimism, and wealth all across our wonderful land. The people elected me to do the job, and I’m doing it. In fact, it has been stated by many that the first month of our presidency is the most successful in the history of our nation. And what makes it even more impressive is that — do you know who number two is? George Washington. How about that? How about that? I don’t know about that list, but we’ll take it.

Within hours of taking the oath of office, I declared a national emergency on our southern border, and I deployed the U.S. military and Border Patrol to repel the invasion of our country. And what a job they’ve done. As a result, illegal border crossings last month were by far the lowest ever recorded. They heard my words, and they chose not to come — much easier that way. In comparison, under Joe Biden, the worst president in American history, there were hundreds of thousands of illegal crossings a month, and virtually all of them — including murderers, drug dealers, gang members, and people from mental institutions and insane asylums — were released into our country. Who would want to do that?

This is my fifth such speech to Congress. And once again, I look at the Democrats in front of me and realize there is absolutely nothing I can say to make them happy, to make them stand, smile, or applaud. Nothing I can do. I could find a cure to the most devastating disease, a disease that would wipe out entire nations, or announce the answers to the greatest economy in history, or the stoppage of crime to the lowest levels ever recorded, and these people sitting right here will not clap, will not stand, and certainly will not cheer for these astronomical achievements. They won’t do it, no matter what. Five times I’ve been up here. It’s very sad, and it just shouldn’t be this way.

So, Democrats sitting before me, for just this one night, why not join us in celebrating so many incredible wins for America? For the good of our nation, let’s work together and let’s truly make America great again.

Every day, my administration is fighting to deliver the change America needs to bring a future that America deserves, and we’re doing it. This is a time for big dreams and bold action. Upon taking office, I issued an immediate freeze on all federal hiring, a freeze on all new federal regulations, and a freeze on all foreign aid. I terminated the ridiculous Green New Scam. I withdrew from the unfair Paris Climate Accord, which was costing us trillions of dollars that other countries were not paying. I withdrew from the corrupt World Health Organization, and I also withdrew from the Anti-American UN Human Rights Council.

We ended all of Biden’s environmental restrictions that were making our country far less safe and totally unaffordable. And, importantly, we ended the last administration’s insane electric vehicle mandate, saving our economy from disaster.

To unshackle our economy, I have directed that for every one new regulation, ten old regulations must be eliminated, just like I did in my very successful first term. And in that first term, we set records on ending unnecessary rules and regulations, like no other president had done before. We ordered all federal workers to return to the office. They will either show up for work in person or be removed from their job. And we have ended weaponized government, where, as an example, a president is allowed to viciously prosecute his political opponent — like me. How did that work out? Not too good. Not too good. Thank you. And I have stopped all government censorship and brought back free speech in America. It’s back!

Two days ago, I signed an order making English the official language of the United States of America. I renamed the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America. And likewise, I renamed, for a great president, William McKinley, Mount McKinley again. Beautiful Alaska — we love Alaska!

We’ve ended the tyranny of so-called diversity, equity, and inclusion policies all across the entire federal government and, indeed, the private sector and our military. And our country will be woke no longer. We believe that whether you are a doctor, an accountant, a lawyer, or an air traffic controller, you should be hired and promoted based on skill and competence, not race or gender. Very important. You should be hired based on merit. And the Supreme Court, in a brave and very powerful decision, has allowed us to do so. Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you.

We have removed the poison of critical race theory from our public schools, and I signed an order making it the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders: male and female. I also signed an executive order to ban men from playing in women’s sports.

We have removed the poison of critical race theory from our public schools, and I signed an order making it the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders: male and female. I also signed an executive order to ban men from playing in women’s sports.

Three years ago, Peyton McNabb was an all-star high school athlete, one of the best, preparing for a future in college sports. But when her girls’ volleyball match was invaded by a male, he smashed the ball so hard into Peyton’s face that it caused a traumatic brain injury, partially paralyzing her right side and ending her athletic career. Peyton is here tonight in the gallery, and Peyton, from now on, schools will kick the men off the girls’ team, or they will lose all federal funding.

And if you really want to see numbers, just take a look at what happened in women’s boxing, weightlifting, track and field, swimming, or cycling, where a male recently finished a long-distance race five hours and 14 minutes ahead of a woman, setting a new record by five hours. It’s demeaning for women, and it’s very bad for our country. We’re not going to put up with it any longer.

What I have just described is only a small fraction of the common sense revolution that is now, because of us, sweeping the entire world. Common sense has become a common theme, and we will never go back. Never. I’m never going to let that happen.

Among my very highest priorities is to rescue our economy and get dramatic and immediate relief to working families. As you know, we inherited from the last administration an economic catastrophe and an inflation nightmare. Their policies drove up energy prices, pushed up grocery costs, and drove the necessities of life out of reach for millions and millions of Americans. We’ve never seen anything like it. We suffered the worst inflation in 48 years, but perhaps even in the history of our country.

As President, I’m fighting every day to reverse this damage and make America affordable again. Joe Biden especially let the price of eggs get out of control. The egg price is out of control, and we’re working hard to get it back down. You inherited a total mess from the previous administration. Do a good job. A major focus of our fight to defeat inflation is rapidly reducing the cost of energy.

The previous administration cut the number of new oil and gas leases by 95 percent, slowed pipeline construction to a halt, and closed more than 100 power plants. We are opening up many of those power plants right now. That’s why, on my first day in office, I declared a national energy emergency. As you’ve heard me say many times, we have more liquid gold under our feet than any nation on Earth — by far. And now I have fully authorized the most talented team ever assembled to go and get it. It’s called Drill, Baby, Drill.

My administration is also working on a gigantic natural gas pipeline in Alaska, among the largest in the world. Japan, South Korea, and other nations want to be our partners with investments of trillions of dollars each. It will be truly spectacular. It’s all set to go. The permitting is complete.

Later this week, I will also take historic action to dramatically expand production of critical minerals and rare Earths here in the USA. To further combat inflation, we will not only be reducing the cost of energy but will be ending the flagrant waste of taxpayer dollars. To that end, I have created the brand new Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. Perhaps you’ve heard of it. Which is headed by Elon Musk, who is in the gallery tonight. Thank you, Elon.

We appreciate it. Everybody here, even this side, appreciates it, I believe. They just don’t want to admit it. Just listen to some of the appalling waste we have already identified:

• $22 billion from HHS to provide free housing and cars for illegal aliens.
• $45 million for diversity, equity, and inclusion scholarships in Burma.
• $40 million to improve the social and economic inclusion of sedentary migrants. Nobody knows what that is.
• $8 million to promote LGBTQI+ initiatives in the African nation of Lesotho, which nobody has ever heard of.
• $60 million for indigenous peoples and Afro-Colombian empowerment in Central America.
• $8 million for making mice transgender. This is real.
• $32 million for a left-wing propaganda operation in Moldova.
• $10 million for male circumcision in Mozambique.
• $20 million for an Arabic Sesame Street in the Middle East.

Under the Trump administration, all of these scams — and many more, which I didn’t think it was appropriate to talk about because they’re so bad — have been exposed and swiftly terminated by a group of very intelligent, mostly young people, headed up by Elon. We found hundreds of billions of dollars in fraud, and we’ve taken back the money and reduced our debt to fight inflation and other issues.

Taking back that money just in time. This is just the beginning. The Government Accountability Office has estimated annual fraud of over $500 billion in our nation, and we are working very hard to stop it. We are also identifying shocking levels of incompetence and probable fraud in the Social Security program. Believe it or not, government databases list 4.7 million Social Security members aged 100 to 109 years old. It lists 3.6 million people from ages 110 to 119. I don’t know any of them.

We have 3.47 million people listed between 120 and 129 years old. 3.9 million between 130 and 139. And 3.5 million between 140 and 149. And money is being paid to many of them. We’re searching right now. Pam, good luck — you’re going to find it. A lot of money is paid out because it just keeps getting paid and paid, and nobody does anything about it. It really hurts Social Security and hurts our country.

There are 1.3 million people listed between 150 and 159 years old. Over 130,000 people, according to the Social Security databases, are aged over 160 years old. We have a healthier country than I thought, Bobby. Including, to finish, 1,039 people between the ages of 220 and 229. One person between the age of 240 and 249. And one person is listed at 360 years of age — more than 100 years older than our country!

But we’re going to find out where that money is going, and it’s not going to be pretty. By slashing all the fraud, waste, and theft we can find, we will defeat inflation, bring down mortgage rates, lower car payments and grocery prices, protect our seniors, and put more money in the pockets of American families. And today, interest rates took a beautiful drop — a big, beautiful drop. It’s about time.

And in the near future, I want to do what has not been done in 24 years: balance the federal budget. We’re going to balance it. With that goal in mind, we have developed, in great detail, what we are calling the Gold Card, which goes on sale very, very soon.

For $5 million, we will allow the most successful job-creating people from all over the world to buy a path to U.S. citizenship. It’s like the Green Card, but better and more sophisticated. They will also be taking people out of colleges and paying for them so that we can keep these talented individuals in our country, instead of forcing them out. While we remove criminals, killers, traffickers, and child predators, we will now bring in brilliant, hardworking, job-creating people who will contribute to America’s success.

Americans have given us a mandate for bold and profound change. For nearly 100 years, the federal bureaucracy has grown until it has crushed our freedoms, ballooned our deficits, and held back America’s potential in every possible way.

The nation founded by pioneers and risk-takers now drowns under millions and millions of pages of regulations and debt. Approvals that should take 10 days instead take 10 years, 15 years, or even 20 years before ultimately being rejected. Meanwhile, we have hundreds of thousands of federal workers who have not been showing up to work.

My administration will reclaim power from this unaccountable bureaucracy, and we will restore true democracy to America again. Any federal bureaucrat who resists this change will be removed from office immediately. We are draining the swamp. It’s very simple — the days of rule by unelected bureaucrats are over.

The next phase of our plan to deliver the greatest economy in history is for this Congress to pass tax cuts for everybody. They are ready and waiting for your vote, and I’m sure that the people on my right — I don’t mean the Republican right, but my right right here — will vote for those tax cuts. If you don’t, I don’t believe the people will ever vote you into office again, so I’m doing you a big favor by telling you that. But I know this group will be voting for the tax cuts.

Thank you. It’s a very, very big part of our plan. We had tremendous success in our first term, and it was a very big part of our plan. We are seeking permanent income tax cuts across the board. And to get urgently needed relief to Americans hit especially hard by inflation, I’m calling for no tax on tips, no tax on overtime, and no tax on Social Security benefits for our great seniors.

I also want to make sure that interest payments on car loans are tax deductible — but only if the car is made in America. And by the way, we are going to see growth in the auto industry like nobody has ever seen. Plants are opening up all over the place. Deals are being made — never seen before. It’s a combination of the election win and tariffs. It’s a beautiful word, isn’t it?

That, along with our other policies, will allow our auto industry to absolutely boom. I spoke to the majors today — all three, the top people — and they are so excited. In fact, already numerous car companies have announced they will be building massive automobile plants in America. Honda just announced a new plant in Indiana, one of the largest anywhere in the world. And this has taken place since our great victory on November 5th — a date which will hopefully go down as one of the most important in the history of our country.

In addition, as part of our tax cuts, we want to cut taxes on domestic production and all manufacturing. Just as we did before, we will provide 100 percent expensing, retroactive to January 20, 2025. It was one of the main reasons our tax cuts were so successful in our first term, giving us the most successful economy in our country’s history.

If you don’t make your product in America, however, under the Trump administration, you will pay a tariff — and in some cases, a rather large one. Other countries have used tariffs against us for decades, and now it’s our turn to start using them against those other countries. On average, the European Union, China, Brazil, India, Mexico, and Canada — and countless other nations — charge us tremendously higher tariffs than we charge them. It’s very unfair.

India charges us auto tariffs higher than 100 percent. China’s average tariff on our products is twice what we charge them. South Korea’s average tariff is four times higher. Think of that — four times higher! And we give them so much help militarily and in so many other ways. But what happens? This is happening by friend and foe alike. This system has never been fair to the United States.

So on April 2nd — because I didn’t want to be accused of April Fool’s Day — reciprocal tariffs kick in. Whatever other countries tariff us, we will tariff them in return. That’s reciprocal — back and forth. Whatever they tax us, we will tax them. If they use non-monetary tariffs to keep us out of their markets, then we will use non-monetary barriers to keep them out of our markets.

We will take in trillions and trillions of dollars and create jobs like we have never seen before. I did it with China and others. The Biden administration couldn’t do anything about it because there was so much money coming in, they couldn’t stop it. We have been ripped off for decades by nearly every country on Earth, and we will not let that happen any longer.

Thanks to our America First policies, we have had $1.7 trillion in new investment in America in just the past few weeks. The combination of the election and our economic policies has led companies like SoftBank to announce a $200 billion investment. OpenAI and Oracle, led by Larry Ellison, announced a $500 billion investment — something they wouldn’t have done if Kamala had won. Apple announced a $500 billion investment — Tim Cook called me, saying he couldn’t spend it fast enough. It’s going to be much higher than that, I believe. They’ll be building their plants here instead of in China.

And just yesterday, Taiwan Semiconductor — the biggest and most powerful in the world — announced a $165 billion investment to build the most advanced chips on Earth right here in the USA. And we’re not giving them any money. Your CHIPS Act is a horrible thing — we give them hundreds of billions of dollars, and it doesn’t mean a thing. They take our money and don’t spend it the way they should. All that meant to them was that they didn’t want to pay the tariffs, so they came here and are building.

We don’t have to give them money — we just want to protect our businesses and our people. They will come because they won’t have to pay tariffs if they build in America. That’s very simple. You should get rid of the CHIPS Act, and whatever is left over, Mr. Speaker, should be used to reduce our debt.

Our new trade policy will also be great for the American farmer — I love the farmer — who will now be selling into our home market, the USA, because nobody is going to be able to compete with you. Goods coming in from other countries will face tariffs, and starting on April 2nd, agricultural products will be protected.

Our farmers may experience a brief adjustment period — just like before when I made the deal with China. I said, ‘Just bear with me,’ and they did. And they probably have to bear with me again — but this will be even better. That was great, but the problem was that Biden didn’t enforce it. Fifty billion dollars in purchases, and we were doing great, but Biden didn’t enforce it, and it hurt our farmers. But now, our farmers are going to have a field day.

So to our farmers — have a lot of fun. I love you too. It’s all going to happen.

And I have also imposed a 25 percent tariff on foreign aluminum, copper, lumber, and steel. Because if we don’t have, for example, steel and lots of other materials, we won’t have a military, and frankly, we won’t have a country for long.

Here today is a proud American steelworker from Decatur, Alabama — Jeff Denard. Jeff Denard has worked at the same steel plant for 27 years, a job that has allowed him to serve as the captain of his local volunteer fire department, raise seven children with his beautiful wife, Nicole, and provide a loving home for over 40 foster children throughout the years. Thank you, Jeff. Stories like Jeff’s remind us that tariffs are not just about protecting American jobs, but about protecting the soul of our country. Tariffs are about making America rich again, making America great again, and it’s happening — and it will happen quickly. There may be some disturbances, but we are okay with that. It won’t be much. Look where Biden took us — very low, the lowest we’ve ever been.

Jeff, I want to thank you very much, and I also want to recognize another person who has devoted herself to the foster care community — someone who worked tirelessly for it, our magnificent First Lady of the United States. Melania’s work has yielded incredible results, helping prepare our nation’s future leaders as they enter the workforce. Our First Lady is joined by two impressive young women. Hailey Ferguson, who benefited from the First Lady’s Fostering the Future initiative, is poised to complete her education and become a teacher. Eliston Berry, who became a victim of an illicit deep fake image created by a peer, helped pass the Senate’s Take It Down Act. This is so important. Thank you very much, John Thune. Stand up, John. Thank you, John. Thank you all very much, and thank you to John Thune and the Senate.

Great job. Criminalizing the publication of such images online — it’s a terrible, terrible thing. Once it passes the House, I look forward to signing that bill into law. Thank you. And I’m going to use that bill for myself, too, if you don’t mind, because nobody gets treated worse than I do online. Nobody. That’s great. Thank you very much to the Senate.

But if we truly care about protecting America’s children, no step is more crucial than securing America’s borders. Over the past four years, 21 million people poured into the United States. Many of them were murderers, human traffickers, gang members, and other criminals from dangerous cities worldwide, thanks to Joe Biden’s insane and very dangerous open border policies. These criminals are now deeply embedded in our country, but we are getting them out — and fast. I want to thank Tom Homan, Kristi, and Paul from Border Patrol for their incredible work. Law enforcement, including Border Patrol and ICE, is doing an amazing job. We must take care of our law enforcement.

Last year, a brilliant 22-year-old nursing student named Lakin Riley — admired by everyone — went for a jog on the University of Georgia campus. That morning, Lakin was viciously attacked, brutally beaten, and horrifically murdered. Lakin was stolen from us by a savage illegal alien gang member who crossed Biden’s open southern border, was arrested, and then released under the heartless policies of that failed administration. He was later arrested in a Democrat-run sanctuary city before ending the life of this beautiful young woman. With us tonight are Lakin’s beloved mother, Allison, and her sister, Lauren. Last year, I promised Lakin’s grieving parents that we would ensure their daughter would not have died in vain. That’s why the very first bill I signed as President mandates the detention of all dangerous criminal aliens who threaten public safety. This strong, powerful act is called the Lakin-Riley Act. So, Allison and Lauren, America will never forget our beautiful Lakin Hope Riley.

Since taking office, my administration has launched the most sweeping border and immigration crackdown in American history, achieving the lowest number of illegal border crossers ever recorded. The media and our friends in the Democrat Party kept saying we needed new legislation to secure the border, but all we really needed was a new president. Joe Biden didn’t just open our borders; he flew illegal aliens over them to overwhelm our schools, hospitals, and communities across the country. Entire towns like Aurora, Colorado, and Springfield, Ohio, buckled under the weight of migrant occupation and corruption, like nothing we’ve seen before, beautiful towns destroyed.

Just as I promised in my inaugural address, we are achieving the great liberation of America, but there is still much work to be done. Here tonight is a woman I’ve gotten to know, Alexis Nungari from Houston. Last June, Alexis’s 12-year-old daughter, Jocelyn, walked to a nearby convenience store. She was kidnapped, tied up, assaulted for two hours under a bridge, and horrifically murdered. Two illegal alien monsters from Venezuela, released into America by the last administration’s ridiculous open border policies, were arrested and charged with this heinous crime. The death of this beautiful 12-year-old girl and the agony of her mother and family touched our entire nation deeply. Alexis, I promised that we would always remember your daughter. Earlier tonight, I signed an order keeping my word to you.

One thing I’ve learned about Jocelyn is that she loved animals and nature. Across Galveston Bay, from where Jocelyn lived in Houston, there is a magnificent national wildlife refuge — a pristine, peaceful 34,000-acre sanctuary for all of God’s creatures on the edge of the Gulf of America. Alexis, I’ve formally renamed that refuge in loving memory of your beautiful daughter, Jocelyn.

All three savages charged with Jocelyn and Lakin’s murders were members of the Venezuelan prison gang, Tren de Hiragua, the toughest gang in the world. Two weeks ago, I officially designated this gang, along with MS-13 and the Bloodthirsty Mexican Drug Cartels, as foreign terrorist organizations. They are now officially in the same category as ISIS — and that’s not good for them. Thousands of these terrorists were welcomed into the U.S. by the Biden administration. But now, every last one will be rounded up and forcibly removed from our country, or if they’re too dangerous, imprisoned and put on trial in this country. With us tonight is a warrior on the front lines of that battle, Border Patrol agent Roberto Ortiz. Great guy.

In January, Roberto and another agent were patrolling by the Rio Grande, near an area known as Cartel Island. Doesn’t sound too nice to me. When heavily armed gunmen started shooting at them, Roberto saw that his partner was totally exposed and in great danger, so he leapt into action, returning fire and providing crucial seconds for his fellow agent to seek safety — just barely. I have some prints of that event, and it was not good. Agent Ortiz, we salute you for your great courage, for the line of fire you took, and for the bravery you showed. We honor you, and we will always honor you. Thank you, Roberto. And I actually got to know him on my many calls to the border — he’s a great gentleman.

The territory immediately south of our border is now dominated entirely by criminal cartels that murder, rape, torture, and exercise total control. They control an entire nation, posing a grave threat to our national security. The cartels are waging war in America, and it’s time for America to wage war on the cartels, which we are doing. Five nights ago, Mexican authorities, because of our tariff policies being imposed on them, handed over 29 of the biggest cartel leaders in their country. That has never happened before. They want to make us happy. First time ever. But we need Mexico and Canada to do much more than they’ve done — they have to stop the fentanyl and drugs pouring into the USA. They’re going to stop it.

I have sent Congress a detailed funding request, outlining exactly how we will eliminate these threats to protect our homeland and complete the largest deportation operation in American history — larger even than the current record holder, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, a moderate man but someone who believed very strongly in borders. Americans expect Congress to send me this funding without delay so I can sign it into law. Mr. Speaker, John Thune, I hope you’re able to do that. Thank you. Mr. Leader, thank you very much. Let’s get it to me — I’ll sign it so fast, you won’t even believe it.

As we reclaim our sovereignty, we must also bring back law and order to our cities and towns. In recent years, our justice system has been turned upside down by radical left lunatics. Many jurisdictions have virtually ceased enforcing the law against dangerous repeat offenders while weaponizing law enforcement against political opponents like me. My administration has acted swiftly and decisively to restore fair, equal, and impartial justice under the constitutional rule of law, starting at the FBI and the DOJ. Pam, good luck. Cash, wherever you may be, good luck. Pam Bondi, good luck. You’re going to do a great job. Cash, thank you. Thank you, Cash. They’ve already started very strongly. They’re going to do a fantastic job. You’re going to be very proud of them.

We’re also, once again, giving our police officers the support, protection, and respect they so dearly deserve. They have to get it. They have such a hard, dangerous job, but we’re going to make it less dangerous. The problem is the bad guys don’t respect the law, but they’re starting to respect it, and they soon will.

This also includes our great fire departments throughout the country. Our firemen and women are unbelievable people, and we’ll never forget them. And besides that, they voted for me in record numbers, so I have no choice. One year ago this month, 31-year-old New York police officer Jonathan Diller, an unbelievably wonderful person and a great officer, was gunned down at a traffic stop on Long Island. I went to his funeral. The vicious criminal charged with his murder had 21 prior arrests, and they were rough arrests. He was a real bad one. The thug in the seat next to him had 14 prior arrests and went by the name of Killer. He was Killer. He killed other people — many, they say. I attended Officer Diller’s service, and when I met his wife and one-year-old son, Ryan, it was very inspirational. His widow’s name is Stephanie, and she is here tonight. Stephanie, thank you very much. Thank you very much.

Stephanie, we’re going to make sure that Ryan knows his dad was a true hero — New York’s finest. We’re going to get these cold-blooded killers and repeat offenders off our streets, and we’re going to do it fast. We have to stop it. They get out after 28 arrests, pushing people into subway trains, hitting people over the head with baseball bats. We’ve got to get them out of here. I’ve already signed an executive order requiring a mandatory death penalty for anyone who murders a police officer, and tonight I’m asking Congress to pass that policy into permanent law. I’m also asking for a new crime bill that gets tough on repeat offenders while enhancing protections for America’s police officers so they can do their jobs without the fear of their lives being totally destroyed. They don’t want to be killed, and we’re not going to let them be killed.

Joining us tonight is a young man who truly loves our police. His name is DJ Daniel. He’s 13 years old and has always dreamed of becoming a police officer. But in 2018, DJ was diagnosed with brain cancer. The doctors gave him five months at most to live. That was more than six years ago. Since then, DJ and his dad have been on a quest to make his dream come true, and DJ has been sworn in as an honorary law enforcement officer, actually a number of times. The police love him, and the police departments love him. Tonight, DJ, we’re going to do you the biggest honor of them all. I am asking our new Secret Service Director, Sean Curran, to officially make you an agent of the United States Secret Service. Thank you, DJ.

DJ’s doctors believe his cancer likely came from a chemical he was exposed to when he was younger. Since 1975, rates of childhood cancer have increased by more than 40%. Reversing this trend is one of the top priorities for our new Presidential Commission to Make America Healthy Again, chaired by our new Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. With the name Kennedy, you’d think everyone would be cheering over here, but how quickly they forget. Our goal is to get toxins out of our environment, poisons out of our food supply, and keep our children healthy and strong. For example, not long ago, one in 10,000 children had autism, and now it’s one in 36. There’s something wrong. One in 36 — think of that. So we’re going to find out what it is, and there’s nobody better than Bobby and all of the people working with him. You have the best team to figure out what is going on. Bobby, good luck. It’s a very important job. Thank you.

My administration is also working to protect our children from toxic ideologies in our schools. A few years ago, January and her husband discovered that their daughter’s school had secretly socially transitioned their 13-year-old daughter. Teachers and administrators conspired to deceive January and her husband while encouraging their daughter to use a new name and pronouns — 'they, them’ — without telling January, who is here tonight and is now a courageous advocate against this form of child abuse. January, thank you. Thank you so much.

Stories like this are why, shortly after taking office, I signed an executive order banning public schools from indoctrinating our children with transgender ideology. I also signed an order to cut off all taxpayer funding to any institution that engages in the sexual mutilation of our youth. And now, I want Congress to pass a bill permanently banning and criminalizing sex changes on children and forever ending the lie that any child is trapped in the wrong body. This is a big lie, and our message to every child in America is that you are perfect exactly the way God made you.

Because we’re getting wokeness out of our schools and our military, and it’s already out of our society — we don’t want it. Wokeness is trouble. Wokeness is bad. It’s gone. And we feel so much better for it, don’t we? Don’t we feel better? Our service members won’t be activists or ideologues. They will be fighters and warriors. They will fight for our country. Pete, congratulations, Secretary of Defense, and he’s not big into the woke movement, I can tell you. I know him well.

I’m pleased to report that in January, the U.S. Army had its best recruiting month in 15 years, and all armed services are having among the best recruiting results ever in history. What a difference. And you know, it was just a few months ago when the results were the opposite. We couldn’t recruit anywhere. Now we’re having the best results we’ve ever had. What a tremendous turnaround. It’s really a beautiful thing to see. People love our country again. It’s very simple. They love our country, and they love being in our military again. So it’s a great thing. Thank you very much. Great job. Thank you.

We’re joined tonight by a young man, Jason, who knows the weight of the call of duty. Jason’s father, grandfather, and great-grandfather all wore the uniform. Tragically, Jason lost his dad, a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputy, when he was just a boy, and now he wants to carry on the family legacy of service. Jason is a senior in high school, a six-letter varsity athlete, a brilliant student with a 4.46 GPA. His greatest dream is to attend the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. And Jason, that’s a big deal. It’s hard to get in. But I’m pleased to inform you that your application has been accepted. You will soon be joining the Corps of Cadets. Thank you. Jason, you’ll be on the long gray line.

As Commander-in-Chief, my focus is on building the most powerful military for the future. As a first step, I’m asking Congress to fund a state-of-the-art Golden Dome Missile Defense Shield to protect our homeland — all made in the USA. Ronald Reagan wanted to do it long ago, but the technology wasn’t there, not even close. But now we have it, and it’s incredible. Other places have it — Israel has it, other countries have it. And the United States should have it too. Right, Tim? They should have it.

I want to thank you, but it’s very important. This is a dangerous world, and we want to be protected. We’re going to protect our citizens like never before. To boost our defense industrial base, we’re also going to resurrect the American shipbuilding industry, including both commercial and military shipbuilding. I’m announcing tonight that we’ll create a new Office of Shipbuilding in the White House and offer special tax incentives to bring this industry back to America where it belongs. We used to make so many ships — we don’t anymore, but we’re going to make them very fast, very soon. It will have a huge impact.

To further enhance our national security, my administration will be reclaiming the Panama Canal, and we’ve already started. Just today, a large American company announced they’re buying both ports around the Panama Canal, and lots of other things related to it. The Panama Canal was built by Americans, for Americans — not for others, but others could use it. It was built at the tremendous cost of American blood and treasure. As many as 38,000 workers died building the canal — dying of malaria, snake bites, and other hazards. The most expensive project ever built in our country’s history. The Canal was given away by the Carter administration for just $1, but that agreement has been severely violated. We didn’t give it to China. We gave it to Panama, and we’re taking it back.

Now we have Marco Rubio and George — good luck, Marco. We know who to blame if anything goes wrong. Marco has been amazing, and he’s going to do a great job. Think of it — he got 100 votes. He was approved with 99, but the 100th was this gentleman, and I feel very certain. So let’s assume he got 100 votes. I’m either very happy about that or very concerned. But he’s already approved. He’s a great gentleman and respected by everybody. We appreciate your vote for Marco. He’s doing a great job.

I also have a message tonight for the incredible people of Greenland. We strongly support your right to determine your own future. And if you choose, we welcome you into the United States of America. We need Greenland for national security and international security, and we’re working with everyone involved to try and get it. But we need it for international world security, and I think we’re going to get it. One way or the other, we’ll get it. We’ll keep you safe, make you rich, and together, we’ll take Greenland to heights like you’ve never thought possible before. It’s a very small population, but a very, very large piece of land — and very important for military security.

America is once again standing strong against radical Islamic terrorism. Three and a half years ago, ISIS terrorists killed 13 American service members and countless others in the Abbey Gate bombing during the disastrous and incompetent withdrawal from Afghanistan. It wasn’t just the withdrawal — it was the way they withdrew. Perhaps the most embarrassing moment in the history of our country. That night, I’m pleased to announce that we’ve just apprehended the top terrorist responsible for that atrocity, and he’s on his way here to face swift American justice. I want to thank especially the government of Pakistan for helping apprehend this monster.

This is a very momentous day for those 13 families I got to know very well, whose children were murdered and the many people who were so badly injured in that fateful day in Afghanistan. What a horrible day. Such incompetence. When Putin saw what happened, I guess he said, ‘Wow, maybe this is my chance.’ That’s how bad it was. It should have never happened. Grossly incompetent people. I spoke to many of the parents and loved ones — they’re all in our hearts tonight. I spoke to them on the phone, and we had a big call. Every one of them called, and they did nothing but cry with happiness. They were very happy — happy as you can be under those circumstances. Their child, brother, sister, son, or daughter was killed for no reason.

In the Middle East, we’re bringing back our hostages from Gaza. In my first term, we achieved one of the most groundbreaking peace agreements in generations — the Abraham Accords. And now we’re going to build on that foundation to create a more peaceful and prosperous future for the entire region. A lot of things are happening in the Middle East. People have been talking about it so much lately, with everything going on with Ukraine and Russia. A lot is happening in the Middle East. A rough neighborhood, actually.

I’m also working tirelessly to end the savage conflict in Ukraine. Millions of Ukrainians and Russians have been needlessly killed or wounded in this horrific and brutal conflict, with no end in sight. The U.S. has sent hundreds of billions of dollars to support Ukraine’s defense, with no security, no guarantees. Do you want to keep it going for another five years? Yeah, Pocahontas says yes. 2,000 people have been killed every week — more than that. They’re Russian and Ukrainian young people. They’re not Americans. But I want it to stop. Meanwhile, Europe has sadly spent more money buying Russian oil and gas than they’ve spent on defending Ukraine by far. Think of that. They’ve spent more on Russian oil and gas than defending Ukraine. And we’ve spent $350 billion. What a difference. And we have an ocean separating us, but they don’t. But we’re getting along very well with them, and good things are happening.

Biden has authorized more money in this fight than Europe has spent — by billions and billions of dollars. It’s hard to believe they wouldn’t have stopped and said, ‘Come on, let’s equalize.’ But that didn’t happen. Earlier today, I received an important letter from President Zelensky of Ukraine. The letter reads: Ukraine is ready to come to the negotiating table as soon as possible to bring lasting peace closer. Nobody wants peace more than the Ukrainians, he said. My team and I stand ready to work under President Trump’s strong leadership to get a peace that lasts. We really value how much America has done to help Ukraine maintain its sovereignty and independence. Regarding the agreement on minerals and security, Ukraine is ready to sign it at any time. I appreciate that he sent this letter. We’ve had serious discussions with Russia, and we’ve received strong signals that they’re ready for peace. Wouldn’t that be beautiful? Wouldn’t that be beautiful? Thank you.

It’s time to stop this madness. It’s time to halt the killing. It’s time to end the senseless war. If you want to end wars, you have to talk to both sides. Nearly four years ago, amid rising tensions, a history teacher named Mark Vogel was detained in Russia and sentenced to 14 years in a penal colony. Rough stuff. The previous administration barely lifted a finger to help him. They knew he was innocent, but they had no idea where to begin. But last summer, I promised his 95-year-old mother, Malphine, that we would bring her boy safely back home. After 22 days in office, I did just that, and they are here tonight. Thank you. To Mark and his great mom, we are delighted to have you safe and sound and with us.

As fate would have it, Mark Vogel was born in a small rural town in Butler, Pennsylvania. Have you heard of it? Where his mother has lived for the past 78 years. I just happened to go there last July 13th for a rally. That was not pleasant. And that is where I met his beautiful mom right before I walked onto that stage. And I told her I would not forget what she said about her son. And I never did, did I? Never forgot. Less than 10 minutes later, at that same rally, gunfire rang out, and a sick and deranged assassin unloaded eight bullets from his sniper’s perch into a crowd of many thousands of people. My life was saved by a fraction of an inch, but some were not so lucky. Corey, a firefighter, a veteran, a Christian, a devoted father, and above all, a protector, knew instantly what to do when the sound of gunshots pierced the air. It was a horrible sound. Corey threw himself on top of his wife and daughters, shielding them from the bullets with his own body. Corey was hit really hard. You know the story from there? He sacrificed his life to save theirs. Two others, very fine people, were also seriously hit. But thankfully, with the help of two great country doctors, we thought they were gone and they were saved. Those doctors had great talent.

We’re joined by Corey’s wife, Helen, who was his high school sweetheart, and their two beloved daughters, Allison and Kaylee. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. To Helen, Allison, and Kaylee, Corey is looking down on his three beautiful ladies right now, and he is cheering you on. He loves you. He is cheering you on. Thank you. Corey was taken from us much too soon, but his destiny was to leave us all with a shining example of the selfless devotion of a true American patriot. It was love like Corey’s that built our country, and it’s love like Corey’s that is going to make our country more majestic than ever before. I believe my life was saved that day in Butler for a very good reason. I was saved by God to make America great again. I believe that. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you very much.

From the patriots of Lexington and Concord, to the heroes of Gettysburg and Normandy, from the warriors who crossed the Delaware, to the trailblazers who climbed the Rockies, and from the legends who soared at Kitty Hawk, to the astronauts who touched the moon, Americans have always been the people who defied all odds, transcended all dangers, made extraordinary sacrifices, and did whatever it took to defend our children, our country, and our freedom. And as we’ve seen in this chamber tonight, that same strength, faith, love, and spirit is still alive and thriving in the hearts of the American people.

Despite the best efforts of those who would try to censor us, silence us, break us, and destroy us, Americans are today a proud, free, sovereign, and independent nation that will always be free — and we will fight for it. Till death, we will never let anything happen to our beloved country. Because we are a country of doers, dreamers, fighters, and survivors. Our ancestors crossed a vast ocean, strode into the unknown wilderness, and carved their fortunes from the rock and soil of a perilous and dangerous frontier. They chased our destiny across a boundless continent. They built the railroads, laid the highways, and graced the world with American marvels like the Empire State Building, the mighty Hoover Dam, and the towering Golden Gate Bridge. They lit the world with electricity, broke free from the force of gravity, fired up the engines of American industry, vanquished communists, fascists, and Marxists all over the world, and gave us countless modern wonders sculpted out of iron, glass, and steel.

We stand on the shoulders of these pioneers who won and built the modern age — these workers who poured their sweat into the skylines of our cities, these warriors who shed their blood on the fields of battle and gave everything they had for our rights and for our freedom. Now it is our time to take up the righteous cause of American liberty, and it is our turn to take America’s destiny into our own hands and begin the most thrilling days in the history of our country. This will be our greatest era.

With God’s help, over the next four years, we are going to lead this nation even higher, and we are going to forge the freest, most advanced, most dynamic, and most dominant civilization ever to exist on the face of this earth. We are going to create the highest quality of life, build the safest, wealthiest, healthiest, and most vital communities anywhere in the world. We are going to conquer the vast frontiers of science, and we are going to lead humanity into space and plant the American flag on the planet Mars and even far beyond. And through it all, we are going to rediscover the unstoppable power of the American spirit, and we are going to renew the unlimited promise of the American dream.

Every single day, we will stand up and we will fight, fight, fight for the country our citizens believe in and for the country our people deserve. My fellow Americans, get ready for an incredible future, because the golden age of America has only just begun. It will be like nothing that has ever been seen before. Thank you, God bless you, and God bless America.”