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Read Live Updates On Donald Trump's First Major Speech To Congress

Read Live Updates On Donald Trump's First Major Speech To Congress
U.S. President Donald Trump gestures thumbs up as he walks on the South Lawn upon his return to the White House in Washington, U.S., February 24, 2017. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas
Yuri Gripas / Reuters
U.S. President Donald Trump gestures thumbs up as he walks on the South Lawn upon his return to the White House in Washington, U.S., February 24, 2017. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas

President Donald Trump gives his first major speech to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday.

Trump will address goals he has for the next year of his presidency, and is expected to speak on the budget, immigration and more.

Read live updates on the event below:

10:13 p.m. ― Few Dems Send Trump Off

10:00 p.m. ― Fallen SEAL’s Wife Gets Emotional

The widow of fallen Navy SEAL Ryan Owens sat next to Ivanka Trump during the speech. She was visibly emotional as the president spoke about her late husband, and the crowd gave her an extended standing ovation amid his remarks.

Owens’ father has spoken out against Trump, demanding an investigation into his son’s death.

― Paige Lavender

9:55 p.m. ― Trump Repeats Weird Line About Labor Force

Trump used a scary number to imply that a shocking swath of the U.S. population is just lazing around.

“Ninety-four million Americans are out of the labor force,” Trump said, repeating a line he frequently used during his campaign.

The Labor Department counts only 7.6 million as unemployed. To get the bigger number, Trump cites people who meet the government definition of “not in the labor force,” which means they’re not working and not looking for work. What Trump doesn’t mention is that nearly half of them aren’t looking for work because they’re retired, and the rest are disabled, or students, or taking care of a family member.

― Arthur Delaney

9:54 p.m. ― Trump Announces VOICE

9:49 p.m. ― On Women’s Health, Remember...

9:45 p.m. ― Dems Give Some Praise

9:44 p.m. ― Not All In GOP Are Clapping

9:42 p.m. ― Dems Flash Thumbs Down

9:40 p.m. ― Miller Beats McMaster In Rhetorical War

Earlier today, we reported on an ongoing debate within Trump’s inner circle over the use of the term “radical Islamic terrorists.” Trump’s new national security adviser, Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, dislikes the use of the term. Opposing him, among others, is White House policy director Stephen Miller, who was reportedly going to deploy the term in Trump’s joint address tonight.

Predictably, Miller won out: “Our obligation is to serve, protect and defend the citizens of the United States,” Trump said, adding, “We are also taking strong measures to protect our nation from radical Islamic terrorism.”

Politico reported today that McMaster was nevertheless “in the process of asserting himself,” and suggested that a “gradual shift” in his direction was something to which everyone involved was open.

― Jason Linkins

9:37 p.m. ― No Substance

9:36 p.m. ― Climate Change

It’s not in the speech, surprising absolutely no one. But Trump’s speech is also low on mentions of energy-related issues in general ― even less than most of his campaign stump speeches.

He made a passing mention of coal and oil pipelines: “We’re going to stop the regulations that threaten the future and livelihoods of our great coal miners. We have cleared the way for the construction of the Keystone and Dakota Access pipelines.”

Later in the speech, he mentions that his administration will work “to promote clean air and clear water.” Some of their first executive actions, however, have been to block or undermine those kind of environmental protections.

― Kate Sheppard

9:35 p.m. ― What Republicans Will Remember

9:33 p.m. ― Trump Still Taking Credit For Corporate Decisions

Since his election, Trump has been swift to characterize any announcement that major firms were adding jobs as something he conjured himself by running for office. At tonight’s joint address, he was back at it:

“Since my election, Ford, Fiat-Chrysler, General Motors, Sprint, Softbank, Lockheed, Intel, Walmart, and many others, have announced that they will invest billions of dollars in the United States and will create tens of thousands of new American jobs”

The facts are these:

Ford: “Ford’s announcement is primarily a response to market forces that have been underway for years. And it is inspired in part by explicit policies of the George W. Bush and Barack Obama administrations—the fruits of which Trump will almost certainly take credit for.”

Fiat/Chrysler: “’This plan was in the works back in 2015,’ Jodi Tinson, a spokeswoman for FCA, told ThinkProgress. ‘This announcement…was just final confirmation.’ When asked directly if it was true that politics and the election had no influence on the announcement, she said, ‘Correct.’”

General Motors: “GM’s plans to add or keep 7,000 American jobs and invest $1 billion in United States manufacturing, which were announced Tuesday and later touted by Trump on Twitter, were actually ‘years in the making,’ according to the company.”

Sprint/Softbank: “Here’s the problem: Despite what Trump and the press release from Sprint said (and what its CEO recently tweeted), these jobs were part of a previous announcement from Softbank (Sprint’s parent company) CEO Masayoshi Son ― not the direct result of working with Trump.”

Lockheed Martin: “Lockheed has every reason to charm Trump: It is the largest U.S. government contractor, according to the most recent most recent data. But these new jobs would have been added with or without him.”

Intel: “But the project isn’t entirely Trump’s doing. In fact, Intel previously announced a $5 billion investment in the same Arizona chip factory with former President Barack Obama in 2011. That money was used to build the ‘shell’ of the factory, but it was left unfinished because of a lack of ‘general demand for the product,’ according to company spokesman William Moss.

The project is resuming now that demand is picking up again.”

Walmart: “Walmart didn’t mention Trump in its announcement...It’s unclear whether Trump or his policies affected the decision, announced days before the inauguration. Walmart declined to comment. CEO Doug McMillon serves on Trump’s economic advisory council.

― Jason Linkins

9:32 p.m. Terrorism vs. Gun Deaths

9:30 p.m. ― Donald Trump Condemns Anti-Semitic Threats

HuffPost’s Mollie Reilly reports:

President Donald Trump on Tuesday addressed the recent flood of threats against Jewish community centers and schools across the country, as well as a racially motivated killing in Kansas City, saying the nation “stands united in condemning hate and evil in all its forms.” ...

“Tonight, as we mark the conclusion of our celebration of Black History Month, we are reminded of our nation’s path toward civil rights and the work that still remains,” Trump said. “Recent threats targeting Jewish community centers and vandalism of Jewish cemeteries, as well as last week’s shooting in Kansas City, remind us that while we may be a nation divided on policies, we are a country that stands united in condemning hate and evil in all its forms.”

Read more here.

9:27 p.m. ― Trump Recognizes Scalia’s Widow

Trump motioned to Maureen Scalia, the widow of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, in the middle of his speech. Scalia attended the speech as one of Trump’s guests.

― Paige Lavender

9:16 p.m. ― Trump Jr. Tweets Support

9:15 p.m. ― Trump Condemns Hate Wave

Trump opened his address to Congress by condemning recent anti-Semitic threats and vandalism.

“Recent threats targeting Jewish Community Centers and vandalism of Jewish cemeteries, as well as last week’s shooting in Kansas City, remind us that while we may be a nation divided on policies, we are a country that stands united in condemning hate and evil in all its forms.”

9:09 p.m. ― Designated Survivor Is ...

Secretary of Veterans Affairs David Shulkin is the designated survivor for tonight’s speech. Read more on that here.

9:04 p.m. ― Trump Enters The Room

Trump made his way into the House chamber just after 9 p.m., shaking hands as he walked his way down the aisle.

Paige Lavender

9:01 p.m. ― White House Releases Speech Excerpts

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