President Donald Trump recapped six weeks of aggressive efforts to chop the federal workforce, reorganise the financial system and reorient overseas coverage in his first tackle to a joint session of the US Congress on Tuesday.
His speech was lengthy by historic requirements – about an hour and 40 minutes – and it impressed extra opposition social gathering pushback than any in current reminiscence.
Home of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson ejected Al Inexperienced, a consultant from Texas and longtime Trump critic, after he disrupted the president a couple of minutes into his speech. Republicans cheered Inexperienced’s removing. As Trump talked about legislation enforcement, some Democratic lawmakers shouted “January 6”, referring to the 2021 Capitol riot that led to quite a few casualties among the many Capitol Police drive. Johnson banged his gavel and referred to as for decorum.
Trump emphasised his dedication to following by on tariffs, together with those who went into impact earlier within the day towards Canada, Mexico and China.
“Tariffs – they’re about defending the soul of our nation,” Trump mentioned. “There might be just a little disturbance, however we’re OK with that. It gained’t be a lot.” To farmers, who’ve been fearful about retaliatory tariffs towards the crops they export, Trump mentioned, “it might be just a little little bit of an adjustment”, however he urged them to “have lots of enjoyable – I really like you, too”.
Right here’s a rundown of a few of his key claims, fact-checked.
“Mexican authorities, due to our tariff policies being imposed on them, consider this, handed it over to us, 29 of the largest cartel leaders of their nation. That has by no means occurred earlier than,” Trump mentioned.
This wants context.
Mexico extradited 29 “leaders and managers of drug cartels” to the US on February 27, the Division of Justice mentioned. The variety of folks extradited in at some point was described as “unconventional” and “unprecedented” by InSight Crime, a suppose tank centered on crime and safety within the Americas.
However Trump is inaccurate to say that Mexico has by no means extradited drug cartel members to the US.
Mexico has extradited several drug cartel members to the US for years, together with throughout Trump’s first time period.
Trump touts Military recruitment improve, however it was already rising
He mentioned, “I’m happy to report that in January, the US Military had its single finest recruiting month in 15 years, and that every one armed providers are having among the many finest recruiting outcomes ever within the historical past of our providers.” Earlier than that, Trump mentioned “wokeness is dangerous” and “gone”.
The navy had one of many worst recruiting years in 2022 for the reason that all-volunteer drive started in 1973, we reported in September 2023.
However Pentagon insurance policies criticised as being “woke” – comparable to range coaching, day off and journey allowances for abortion entry and healthcare protection for transgender members – weren’t the first situation affecting recruitment. The largest drivers included competitors from the civilian labour market, the lingering results of COVID-19 restrictions and the gradual decline within the variety of younger individuals who meet the requirements.
Days earlier than Trump took workplace, Military Secretary Christine Wormuth instructed The Related Press information company that the Military was on tempo to usher in 61,000 younger folks by the top of the fiscal yr in September, the second straight yr of assembly recruitment targets.
In fiscal yr 2024, which ended on September 30, the Military recruited 55,150 folks, barely greater than the purpose. That was an enchancment over 2023, when the Military achieved 76.6 p.c of the purpose of 65,500.
Taren Sylvester, who researches navy recruitment on the Centre for a New American Safety in Washington, DC, instructed NPR in February {that a} foremost motive for the recruitment improve is an Military programme for future troopers that helped Individuals get bodily match or academically in control so they may qualify to hitch.
Trump says autism charges have elevated from one in 10,000 youngsters to 1 in 36
Trump mentioned there was a rise within the variety of youngsters recognized with autism and famous which means there’s “one thing mistaken”.
That is partly true.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says the present estimate is that one in 36 youngsters within the US are recognized and that charges have elevated, pushed each by advances in diagnostic screening in addition to a rise in prevalence of the situation. Researchers within the Sixties estimated that about two to 4 youngsters in 10,000 have been autistic.
The general prevalence of autism spectrum dysfunction (ASD) was one in 36 youngsters aged eight years and was nearly 4 instances as prevalent in boys as amongst women, in line with a March 2023 report within the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. The rise is available in half due to a broadened definition of the situation, extra parental consciousness of autism, and improved screening. Different threat elements embody untimely beginning and genetics.
Trump made the remark about autism charges after praising Robert F Kennedy Jr, his Well being and Human Providers secretary. Kennedy, who’s heading up a process drive to check childhood chronic diseases, has championed vaccine scepticism and baseless theories about autism.
Trump overstates US assist to Ukraine, once more
Trump mentioned, “We’ve spent maybe $350bn” on Ukraine.
That is incorrect.
The amount the US has spent on Ukraine varies relying on what’s being counted, however most estimates are within the $175bn to $185bn vary, Mark Cancian, a senior defence and safety adviser on the Middle for Strategic and Worldwide Research beforehand instructed PolitiFact.
Ukraine Oversight, the web site of the particular inspector common for Operation Atlantic Resolve, which the US authorities created in 2014 to coordinate its navy assist to Ukraine, mentioned as of September 30, 2024, the US had spent $183bn to assist Ukraine.
Trump inflates financial savings by the Division of Authorities Effectivity
Trump mentioned, “We discovered hundreds of billions of dollars of fraud, and we’ve taken again the cash.”
That’s mistaken.
As of March 4, the DOGE web site confirmed $105bn in financial savings. However its “wall of receipts”, the place it claims to be monitoring financial savings generated from DOGE’s cuts, confirmed lower than $20bn. That “wall of receipts” has been riddled with errors.
The White Home has pointed to initiatives it disagrees with ideologically, comparable to about range, fairness and inclusion or local weather change. However that doesn’t show fraud which is decided by courts and requires against the law and intent to deceive.
The hunt for fraud will not be new. For a long time, inspectors common have looked for fraud in authorities companies with some investigations resulting in prosecutions.
Trump created DOGE by executive order on his first day in workplace.
Trump incorrectly claims Biden flew immigrants over US borders
A humanitarian parole programme began by President Joe Biden allowed 30,000 eligible immigrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela a month to enter the US. They may reside and work within the US legally for 2 years. The Biden administration didn’t cowl journey prices; beneficiaries needed to ebook and fund their journey.
Trump ended the programme.
Trump says 21 million folks illegally entered the US ‘over the previous 4 years’
False.
Immigration officers encountered immigrants illegally crossing the US border about 10.4 million instances from February 2021, Biden’s first full month in workplace, to January 2025, his final.
When accounting for congressional Republicans’ September 2024 “gotaways” estimate – individuals who border officers don’t cease – the quantity rises to about 12.4 million.
However encounters should not the identical as admissions. Encounters signify occasions. So one one who tries to cross the border twice counts as two encounters. Additionally, not everybody encountered is let into the nation. The Homeland Safety Division estimated that about 4.5 million encounters led to expulsions or removals from February 2021 by November 2024.
Trump misled about implausibly outdated folks getting Social Safety funds
Trump mentioned Social Safety databases present thousands and thousands of individuals aged above 100 years and “cash is being paid to a lot of them”.
That is mistaken.
Trump recited numbers from a chart Elon Musk shared on X, which confirmed thousands and thousands of individuals in a Social Safety database over the age of 100, together with one who was within the 360-369 age bracket.
The appearing Social Safety commissioner mentioned folks older than 100 who would not have a date of dying related to their Social Safety report “should not essentially receiving advantages”. Latest Social Safety Administration knowledge exhibits that about 89,000 folks aged 99 and older obtain Social Safety funds.
Authorities databases might classify somebody as 150 years outdated for causes peculiar to the complicated Social Safety database or due to lacking knowledge, however that doesn’t imply that thousands and thousands of funds are delivered fraudulently to folks with implausible ages.
Trump on historic inflation beneath Biden
Trump mentioned, “We suffered the worst inflation in 48 years, however maybe even within the historical past of our nation, they’re undecided.”
That is partly appropriate.
The best year-over-year inflation fee on Biden’s watch was about 9 p.c in 2022.
The best sustained, year-over-year US inflation charges have been recorded within the Nineteen Seventies and early 80s, when the worth improve generally ranged from 12 p.c to fifteen p.c. That was greater than 40 years in the past. (For one yr – 1946, after the US gained World Struggle II – the general year-over-year inflation fee exceeded 18 p.c.)
However since quite a few years had inflation increased than 9 p.c, Trump will not be appropriate that it’s the highest in US historical past.
Paris local weather settlement didn’t value US ‘trillions’
Trump defended his decision to pull out of the Paris climate agreement, saying the pact was costing the US “trillions of {dollars}”.
That’s false.
The Trump administration defended the choice to withdraw from the local weather settlement, partly primarily based on projections by guide NERA Financial Consulting. It concluded that restrictions on fossil gas emissions would lead to a better value of manufacturing, and a better value of manufacturing would translate into the closure of uncompetitive manufacturing companies. These closures, in flip, would imply fewer manufacturing jobs.
The guide estimated that these losses and their knock-on results past the manufacturing sector would quantity to 1.1 million jobs misplaced by 2025 and 6.5 million by 2040. The lack of jobs leads to a corresponding decline in gross home product (GDP), with a lack of $250bn by 2025 that accelerates to $3 trillion by 2040.
So the local weather settlement was not costing the US trillions of {dollars}. It hypothetically might.
However even when it did, the examine says the long-term projections didn’t consider the entire offsetting job positive factors and GDP progress related to a clear tech transition.
