[House Document 119-1]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
119th Congress, 1st Session--------------------HOUSE DOCUMENT 119-1
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PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS BEFORE A JOINT SESSION OF CONGRESS
__________
MESSAGE
from
THEPRESIDENTOFTHEUNITEDSTATES
transmitting
THE PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS BEFORE A JOINT SESSION OF CONGRESS
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
March 5, 2025.--Message and accompanying papers referred to the
Committee on the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to
be printed
To the Congress of the United States:
Speaker Johnson, Vice President Vance, the First Lady of
the United States, members of the United States Congress, and
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 accomplish in 4 years or 8 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.
The presidential election of November 5th was a mandate
like has not been seen in many decades. We won all 7 swing
states, giving us an Electoral College victory of 312 votes. We
won the popular vote by millions, and won counties in our
country 2,700 to 525--on a map it reads almost completely red
for Republican.
Now, for the first time in modern history, more Americans
believe that our country is headed in the right direction than
the wrong direction--an astonishing record 27-point swing since
Election Day alone. Likewise, small business optimism saw its
single largest one-month gain ever recorded--a 41 point jump.
Over the past 6 weeks, I have signed nearly 100 Executive
Orders and taken more than 400 Executive Actions to restore
common sense, safety, optimism, and wealth all across our
wonderful land. The People elected me to do the job, and I am
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. What makes it even more impressive is that
number two on the list is the late, great George Washington.
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. 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. In comparison, under Joe Biden, the worst
president in American History, there were hundreds of thousands
of illegals crossing 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.
This is my fifth such speech to Congress--and once again, I
look at the Democrats in front of me, and I realize that there
is absolutely nothing I can say to make them happy, or to make
them stand, smile, or applaud. 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. It's very sad, and it shouldn't be
this way. Democrats sitting before me, for just this one night,
why not join us in celebrating so many incredible wins for
America? And for the good of our nation, let's work together,
and truly Make America Great Again!
Every day, my administration is fighting to deliver the
change America needs, and the future Americans deserve. This is
a time for big dreams, and bold action.
Upon taking office, I imposed 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, I withdrew from the corrupt
World Health Organization, and I withdrew from the anti-
American U.N. 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 autoworkers and companies from economic ruination.
To unshackle our economy, I have directed that for every 1
new regulation, 10 old regulations must be eliminated, just
like I did in my very successful first term, when we set
records on ending unnecessary rules and regulations.
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.
We have ended weaponized government, where as an example, a
sitting president is allowed to viciously prosecute his
political opponent--how did that work out? And I have stopped
all government censorship, and brought back free speech in
America.
I also signed an order making English the official language
of the United States.
I renamed the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America, and we
are restoring the name of a great president, William McKinley,
to Mount McKinley in beautiful Alaska.
We have ended the tyranny of so-called ``Diversity, Equity,
and Inclusion'' policies across the entire Federal government
and private sector. 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. You should
be hired based on merit--and the Supreme Court, in a brave and
very powerful decision, has allowed us to do so.
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 women's
sports. 3 years ago, Payton McNabb was an all-star high school
athlete preparing for a future in college sports. But when her
girls' volleyball match was invaded by a male, he smashed the
ball in Payton's face, causing traumatic brain injury,
partially paralyzing her right side, and ending her athletic
career. Payton is here tonight in the gallery--and Payton, from
now on, schools will kick the men off the girls' teams, 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,
weight lifting, track and field, swimming, or cycling, where a
male recently finished a long-distance race 5 hours and 14
minutes ahead of the women. It's demeaning for women, and it's
bad for our country.
What I have just described is only a small fraction of the
Common-Sense revolution that is now, because of us, sweeping
the world. Common Sense has become a Common Theme--and we will
never go back.
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 the cost of groceries, and
drove the necessities of life out of reach for millions of
Americans. We suffered the worst inflation in 48 years, but
perhaps even in the history of our country. As President, I am
fighting every day to reverse this damage and Make America
affordable Again.
Joe Biden especially let the price of eggs get out of
control--and we are working hard to get it back down.
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%, slowed pipeline
construction to a halt, and closed more than 100 power plants.
We have never seen anything like it.
That is why on my first day in office, I declared a
National Energy Emergency.
We have more liquid gold under our feet than any nation on
earth, by far, and I have fully authorized a very powerful
program. 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, where
Japan, South Korea, and other nations want to be our partner--
with trillions of dollars being spent by them. It will truly be
spectacular.
Later this week, I will also take historic action to
dramatically expand production of critical minerals and rare
earths here in USA.
To further quench the fires of 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--headed by Elon
Musk, who is in the gallery tonight.
Just listen to some of the appalling waste we have already
identified: $22 billion dollars from H.H.S. to provide free
housing and cars for illegal aliens. $45 million dollars for
Diversity Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) scholarships in Burma.
$40 million dollars to improve the ``social and economic
inclusion of sedentary migrants.'' $8 million dollars to
promote ``L.G.B.T.Q.I. Plus'' in the African nation of Lesotho,
which nobody ever heard of. $60 million dollars for Indigenous
Peoples and Afro-Colombian Empowerment in Central America. $8
million dollars for making mice transgender. $32 million
dollars for a left-wing propaganda operation in Moldova. $10
million dollars for male circumcision in Mozambique. $20
million dollars for the Arab Sesame Street programming in the
Middle East. $1.9 billion dollars to a recently-created
``decarbonization of homes'' committee of Stacey Abrams. A $3.5
million dollar consulting contract for ``larval fish
monitoring.'' $1.5 million dollars for ``voter confidence'' in
Liberia. $14 million dollars for ``social cohesion'' in Mali.
$59 million dollars for illegal alien hotel rooms in New York
City. $250,000 to increase ``Vegan Local Climate Action
Innovation'' in Zambia. $42 million dollars for ``social and
behavior change'' in Uganda. $14 million dollars for
``improving public procurement'' in Serbia. $47 million dollars
for ``improving learning outcomesin Asia.'' And $101 million
dollars for DEI contracts at the Department of Education.
Under the Trump Administration, all of these scams, and
many more, have been found out, exposed, and swiftly
terminated. We have taken back the money, and reduced our debt
to fight inflation. This is just the beginning--the Government
Accountability Office has estimated annual fraud of over $500
billion dollars, and we are going to stop it. When people
criticize us, they never talk about where the money is going
to, they only claim it's supposedly a violation of the
Constitution, which it's not. But they don't mean that, they
don't care about our Constitution. They only care about the
money. The whole thing is a scam.
We are also identifying shocking levels of incompetence and
probable fraud in the Social Security program our seniors rely
on. Believe it or not, Government databases list 4.7 million
Social Security numbers from people aged 100 to 109 years old.
3.6 million from ages 110 to 119. 3.47 million from ages 120 to
129. 3.9 million from ages 130 to 139. 3.5 million from ages
140 to 149. 1.3 million from ages 150 to 159. And over 130,000
over age 160. Including 1,039 people between the ages of 220 to
229. One person between the age of 240 to 249. And one person
at 360 years of age.
By slashing all of 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 in the near
future, I want to do what has not been done in 24 years:
balance the Federal budget.
With that goal in mind, we have developed in great detail
what we are calling the Gold Card, which goes on sale very
soon. For $5 million dollars, we will allow the most
successful, job-creating people from all over the world to buy
a path to U.S. citizenship. So while we take out the criminals,
killers, traffickers, and child predators, who were allowed to
enter our country under the open border policy of the Biden
Administration, we will now bring in brilliant, hardworking,
job-creating people.
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
of pages of regulations and debt. Approvals that should take 10
days instead take 10 years. 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. We are draining the swamp.
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.
We are seeking permanent income tax cuts across the board. And
to get urgently needed relief to Americans hit especially hard
by inflation, I am 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 interest payments on car loans tax
deductible--but only if the car is made in America. That, along
with our other policies, will allow our auto industry to boom.
In fact, already, numerous car companies have announced that
they will be building massive automobile plants in America,
with Honda just announcing a new plant in Indiana, one of the
largest in the world. This has taken place since our great
Election 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 manufacturing. This will reward
businesses that build in America, hire American workers, and
stamp their products with those beautiful words, Made in the
USA. And just as we did before, we will provide 100%
expensing--it will be retroactive to January 20th, 2025, and it
was one of the reasons why our tax cuts were so successful in
the first term.
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, now it is our turn to start using them
against those other countries. On average, the EU, China,
Brazil, India, and countless other nations charge us tariffs
many times higher than ours. India charges us auto tariffs
higher than 100%. China's average tariff on our products is
twice what we charge them, and South Korea's average tariff is
4 times higher. This system is not fair to the United States,
and never was, so on April 2nd, reciprocal tariffs kick in.
Whatever they tariff us, we tariff them. Whatever they tax
us, we tax them. If they do non-monetary tariffs to keep us out
of their market, then we do non-monetary barriers to keep them
out of our market. We will take in trillions of dollars, and
create jobs like we have never seen before. We have been ripped
off for decades by nearly every country on earth, both friend
and foe alike. We are not going to allow that to happen
anymore. Much has been said about Mexico and Canada, but we
have large deficits with them. They are in effect
receivingsubsides of hundreds of billions of dollars, and the United
States will not be doing that any longer.
Thanks to the America First policies we are putting into
place, we have had $1.7 trillion dollars of new investment in
America in the past few weeks: SoftBank announced $200 billion,
OpenAI and Oracle announced $500 billion, Apple announced $500
billion, and just yesterday, Taiwan Semiconductor, the biggest
in the world by far, announced $165 billion dollars to build
the most powerful chips on earth, right here in the USA.
Our new trade policy will also be great for the American
farmer--who will now be selling into our home market, because
nobody is going to be able to compete with you. Tariffs will go
on agricultural product coming into America on April 2nd. Have
fun farmers, I love you too! And I have also imposed a 25%
tariff on foreign aluminum, copper, lumber, and steel--because
if we don't have steel, and lots of other things, we don't have
a military, and frankly, we don't have a country.
Here today is a proud American steelworker from Decatur,
Alabama. Jeff Denard has been working at the same steel plant
for 27 years, in a job that has allowed him to serve as the
captain of his local volunteer fire department, raise 7
children with his wife Nicole, and over the years, provide a
loving home to more than 40 foster children.
Stories like Jeff's remind us that tariffs are not just
about protecting American jobs--they're about protecting the
soul of our country. Tariffs are about Making America rich
again and Making America Great Again. Jeff, thank you.
I also want to recognize another person who has devoted
herself to the foster care community--our magnificent First
Lady. 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: Haley Ferguson, who benefitted from the First Lady's
Fostering the Future Initiative, and is poised to complete her
education and become a teacher; and Elliston Berry, who became
a victim of an illicit Deepfake image produced by a peer. With
Elliston's help, the Senate just passed the ``Take It Down
Act,'' to criminalize the publication of such images online--
and once it passes the House, I look forward to signing that
bill into law.
But if we truly care about protecting America's children,
no step is more crucial than securing America's borders. Over
the past 4 years, 21 million people poured into the United
States--many of them were murderers, drug dealers, gang
members, and other criminals from the streets of dangerous
cities all throughout the world. Because of Joe Biden's insane
and very dangerous open border policies, they are now strongly
embedded in our country, but we are getting them out.
Last year, a brilliant 22-year-old nursing student named
Laken Riley, the best in her class, went out for a jog on the
campus of the University of Georgia. That morning, Laken was
viciously attacked, assaulted, beaten, brutalized, and
horrifically murdered. Laken was stolen from us by a savage
illegal alien gang member who was arrested while trespassing
across Biden's open southern border, and then set loose into
the United States under the heartless policies of that failed
administration. He had then been arrested and released in a
Democrat-run Sanctuary City, before ending the life of this
beautiful angel.
With us this evening are Laken's beloved mother, Allyson,
and her sister Lauren. Last year, I told Laken's grieving
parents that we would ensure their daughter would not have died
in vain. That is why the very first bill I signed into law as
our 47th president mandates the detention of all dangerous
criminal aliens who threaten public safety. It is called the
Laken Riley Act. Allyson and Lauren, America will never, ever
forget our beautiful Laken Hope Riley.
Since taking office, my administration has launched the
most sweeping border and immigration crackdown in American
history--and we quickly achieved the lowest numbers 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 it turned
out that 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 throughout the country. Entire towns like Aurora,
Colorado and Springfield, Ohio, buckled under the weight of the
migrant occupation and corruption. Now, just as I promised in
my inaugural address, we are achieving the Great Liberation of
America.
But there still is much work to be done. Here tonight is a
woman I have gotten to know, Alexis Nungaray from Houston. Last
June, Alexis's 12-year-old daughter, her precious Jocelyn,
walked to a nearby convenience store. She was kidnapped, tied
up, assaulted for two hours under a bridge, and horrifically
murdered. Arrested and charged with this heinous crime are two
illegal alien monsters from Venezuela released into America by
the last administration.
The death of this beautiful 12-year-old girl and the agony
of her mother and family touched our entire nation, greatly.
Alexis, I promised you that we would always remember your
daughter, and earlier tonight I signed an order keeping my word
to you. One thing I have learned about Jocelyn is that sheloved
animals, and loved nature. Across Galveston Bay from where Jocelyn
lived in Houston, you will find a National Wildlife Refuge--a pristine,
peaceful 34,000-acre sanctuary for all God's creatures on the edge of
the Gulf of America. Alexis, moments ago, I formally renamed that
refuge in loving memory of your daughter, Jocelyn Nungaray. Mr. Vice
President, please present the order.
All three savages charged with Jocelyn and Laken's murders
were members of the Venezuelan prison gang known as Tren de
Aragua. 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. Countless thousands of these terrorists
were welcomed into the U.S. by the last administration. But
now, every last one will be rounded up and forcibly removed
from our country.
With us this evening is a warrior on the front lines of
that battle: Border Patrol Agent Roberto Ortiz. In January,
Roberto and another agent were patrolling by the Rio Grande
near an area known as ``cartel island,'' when heavily armed
gunmen started shooting. Roberto saw that his partner was
totally exposed, and he leapt into action, returning fire, and
providing crucial seconds for his fellow agent to seek safety.
Agent Ortiz, we salute your courage in the line of fire.
The territory to the immediate South of our border is now
dominated entirely by criminal cartels that murder, rape,
torture, and exercise total control--posing a grave threat to
our national security. The Cartels are waging war on America,
and it is time for America to wage war on the cartels.
5 nights ago, Mexican Authorities, because of the tariffs
being imposed on them, handed over to us 29 of the biggest
cartel leaders in their country--it has never happened before.
But we need Mexico and Canada to do much more--they have to
stop the fentanyl and drugs pouring into our country.
I have sent Congress a detailed funding request laying out
exactly how we will eliminate these threats, protect our
Homeland, and complete the largest deportation operation in
American history, larger even than current recordholder 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.
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 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 DOJ.
We are also once again giving our police officers the
support, protection, and respect they so dearly deserve. This
also includes our great fire departments throughout the
country, who are likewise under siege.
One year ago this month, 31-year-old New York Police
Officer Jonathan Diller was gunned down at a traffic stop on
Long Island. The vicious criminal charged with his murder had
21 prior arrests. The thug in the seat next to him had 14 prior
arrests and went by the name ``Killer.'' I attended Officer
Diller's funeral, and met his one-year-old son Ryan and his 29
year-old widow Stephanie--and she is here tonight. Stephanie,
we are going to make sure Ryan knows his dad was a Hero--and we
are going to get these cold-blooded killers and repeat
offenders off our streets, and fast.
I have already signed an Executive Order requiring a
mandatory death penalty for anyone who murders a police
officer--and tonight I am asking Congress to pass that policy
into permanent law. I am also asking for a new Crime Bill
getting tough on repeat offenders, while enhancing protections
for America's police officers--so they can do their jobs
without fear of their lives being destroyed.
Joining us in the Gallery tonight is a young man who truly
loves our police. His name is D.J. Daniel, he is 13 years old,
and he has always dreamed of becoming an officer. But in 2018,
D.J. was diagnosed with brain cancer--the doctors gave him 5
months to live. That was more than 6 years ago. Since that
time, D.J. and his dad have been on a quest to make his dream
come true. D.J. has been sworn in as an honorary law
enforcement officer a number of times. And tonight, D.J., 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. Sean, please
present D.J. with his badge. Thank you, D.J.
D.J.'s doctors believe his cancer likely came from a
chemical he was exposed to when he was younger. Since 1975,
rates of child cancer have increased 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. Our goal is to get toxins out of our environment,
poisons out of our food supply, and keep our children healthy
and strong. As an example, not long ago, 1 in ten thousand
children had autism.Now it's 1 in 36. Something is wrong, and
we are going to find out what it is.
My administration is also working to protect our children
from toxic ideologies in our schools. A few years ago, January
Littlejohn and her husband discovered that their daughter's
school had secretly ``socially transitioned'' their 13-year-old
girl. Teachers and administrators conspired to deceive January
and her husband, while encouraging her daughter to use a new
name and ``they/them'' pronouns--all without telling January,
who is here tonight, and is now a courageous advocate against
this child abuse.
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.
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. Our message to
every child in America is that you are perfect exactly the way
God made you.
We are getting wokeness out of our schools--and also out of
our military. Our service members won't be activists and
ideologues--they will be fighters and warriors. I am pleased to
report that in January, the U.S. Army had its single best
recruiting month in 15 years--and all of our Armed Services are
having among the best recruiting results in modern history.
We are joined tonight by a young man, Jason Hartley, who
knows the weight of that call of duty. Jason's father,
grandfather, and great-grandfather all wore the uniform. Jason
tragically lost his dad, who was also 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 6-letter varsity athlete, a brilliant student
with a 4.46 GPA, and his greatest dream is to attend the U.S.
Military Academy at West Point. Jason, I am pleased to inform
you that your application has been accepted--you will soon be
joining the Corps of Cadets and the proud ranks of the Long
Gray Line.
As Commander-in-Chief, my focus is on building the most
powerful military of the future. As a first step, I am 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 just
wasn't there.
To boost our defense industrial base, we are also going to
resurrect the American shipbuilding industry, including
commercial shipbuilding. For that purpose, I am announcing
tonight that we will create a new Office of Shipbuilding in the
White House, and offer special tax incentives to bring this
industry home to America, where it belongs.
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 are buying
both ports around the Panama Canal. The Canal was built by
Americans, for Americans, at tremendous cost of American blood
and treasure--38,000 workers died building the canal, the most
expensive project ever built in our country's history. It was
given away by the Carter administration for $1 dollar, but that
agreement has since been severely violated. We didn't give the
Canal to China, we gave it to Panama, and we're taking it back.
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 will keep you safe, we will make you
rich, and together we will take Greenland to heights like you
have never seen before.
America is once again standing strong against the forces of
Radical Islamic Terrorism. Three and a half years ago, ISIS
terrorists killed 13 American servicemembers and countless
others in the Abbey Gate bombing during the disastrous
withdrawal from Afghanistan, perhaps the most embarrassing
moment in the history of our country. Tonight, I am pleased to
announce that we have just apprehended the top terrorist
responsible for that atrocity, and he is right now on his way
here to face the swift sword of American Justice. I want to
thank the government of Pakistan for helping arrest this
monster. This is a momentous day for those 13 families whose
children were murdered, and the many so badly injured on that
fateful day in Afghanistan. I spoke to many of them today, and
they are all in our hearts tonight.
In the Middle East, we are 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 are going to build on that foundation to
create a more peaceful and prosperous future for the entire
region.
I am 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 United States has sent
hundreds of billions of dollars to support Ukraine's
defense.Meanwhile, Europe has sadly spent more money buying Russian oil
and gas than they have spent on defending Ukraine--by far! And Biden
has authorized more money in this fight than Europe has spent. 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 Ukrainians. My team and I stand ready to
work under President Trump's strong leadership to get a peace that
lasts. We do 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 and in
any convenient format.'' I appreciate this letter. Simultaneously we've
had serious discussions with Russia, and have received strong signals
that they are ready for peace. It is time to stop this madness. It is
time to halt the killing. And it is time to end this 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 Marc Fogel was detained in Russia and sentenced
to 14 years in a penal colony. The previous administration
barely lifted a finger to help. 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. To Marc and his mom, we are delighted to have
you safe and sound.
As fate would have it, Marc Fogel was born in the small
rural town of Butler Pennsylvania, where his mother has lived
for the past 78 years. I just happened to go there last July
13th for a rally, and that is where I met his mom, right before
I walked out on stage. I told her I would not forget her son,
and I never did.
Less than 10 minutes later at that same rally, gunfire rang
out, and a sick and deranged assassin unloaded 8 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 Comperatore was a firefighter, a veteran, a
Christian, a husband, a devoted father, and above all, a
protector. When the sound of gunshots pierced the air, Corey
knew instantly what to do. He threw himself on top of his wife
and daughters, and shielded them from the bullets with his own
body. Corey was hit, and he was hit hard. He sacrificed his
life to save theirs. Two others were also seriously hit, but
thankfully they have recovered.
We are joined by Corey's wife, Helen, who was his high
school sweetheart, and their two beloved daughters, Allyson and
Kaylee. To Helen, Allyson, and Kaylee, Corey is looking down on
his three beautiful ladies right now, and he is cheering you
on.
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 an American Patriot. It was love like Corey's that built our
country--and it is love like Corey's that is going to make our
country more majestic than ever before.
I believe that my life was saved that day in Butler for a
reason: I was saved by God to Make America Great Again.
From the patriots of Lexington and Concord to the heroes at
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 the most
extraordinary sacrifices, and did whatever it took to defend
our children, our country, and our freedom. And as we have 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, and that, we
will always be.
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 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 of the force of gravity, fired up the engines of American
industry, vanquished the 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 fields of battle, and gave everything they had for our
rights and 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, 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. 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.
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.
Donald J. Trump.
The White House, March 4, 2025.
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