Polished Trump Gives Anti-Immigrant Arguments a Makeover in Congressional Address
POTUS uses first speech to joint session of Congress to unveil new agency dedicated to “Victims of Immigration Crime Engagement”
Itay Hod | February 28, 2017 @ 8:08 PM
Last Updated: February 28, 2017 @ 8:58 PM
Getty
President Donald Trump wore a sleek-fitting suit and spoke in calm, restrained tones in his first address to Congress. He denounced bigotry and called for unity.
And then he delivered the blunt message that some illegal immigrants are killers.
For all the plaudits that Trump was at his most presidential, he used the speech to dress up his old campaign argument that many Mexicans who cross the border to the United States are rapists, drug dealers or criminals.
To that end, he announced a new agency, “Victims of Immigration Crime Engagement,” that will address crimes committed by illegal immigrants. He made murderers the face of illegal immigration by welcoming and highlighting guests whose relatives were killed by illegal immigrants.
Trump took care not to frame his attack in racial terms — he even started his speech by denouncing recent vandalism of Jewish community centers and condemning an attack on Indian immigrants in Kansas last week.
But Trump drew a connection between illegal immigration and violent crime by welcoming guests Jessica Davis and Susan Oliver — both widows of California police officers killed by an illegal immigrant in 2014 — and Jamiel Shaw Sr., whose son was shot by a gang member in Los Angeles in 2008.
Democrats invited immigrants who have made contributions to America, but Trump focused on the worst possible representatives of immigration.
“I want you to know — we will never stop fighting for justice,” Trump said directly to his guests. “Your loved ones will never be forgotten, we will always honor their memory.”
The president entered the House chamber to loud applause as he sought to change the chaotic narrative surrounding his first month in office. He said the country was experiencing “the renewal of the American spirit,” adding, “Our allies will find that America is once again ready to lead.”
The president took credit for keeping thousands of jobs from leaving the country, telling Congress that since the 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.” That contention has been questioned by fact-checkers in the past.
“The stock market has gained almost three trillion dollars in value since the election on November 8th, a record. We’ve saved taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars by bringing down the price of the fantastic new F-35 jet fighter, and will be saving billions more dollars on contracts all across our Government,” Trump said.
“The time for small thinking is over,” he continued. “The time for trivial fights is behind us. We just need the courage to share the dreams that fill our hearts, the bravery to express the hopes that still our souls and the confidence to turn those hopes and dreams to action.”
But his address was rife with hard undertones, including warnings about “radical Islamic terrorism” and a vow to “begin the construction of a great, great wall along our southern border.”
Halfway thorough his speech, Trump reiterated his promise to “repeal and replace” the Affordable Care Act.
“Tonight I’m also calling on this Congress to repeal and replace Obamacare with reforms that expand choice, increase access, lower costs and at the same time provide better health care,” Trump said.
His criticism of Obama’s signature law didn’t sit well with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, who could be seen shaking her head when he called the ACA a “disaster.”
Noticeably absent from the speech was Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who confirmed earlier in the day that she would skip the event. Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito did not attend either, continuing their past practice.
12 Moments That Would Make Donald Trump Glad He Skipped the Oscars (Photos)
White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said this week Donald Trump wouldn't be watching the 2017 Academy Awards. That was probably a good idea, since lots of people in Hollywood had digs for the president during the award show. Even some of the ads played during the show were critical. Here are all the political moments from the Oscars.
Kimmel jokes about Trump's travel ban In Hollywood, "We don't discriminate against people based on what countries they come from. We discriminate against people based on their age and weight," Kimmel joked.
Iranian director tears Trump's travel ban "The Salesman" director Asghar Farhadi skipped the Oscars. In a statement he said, "I’m sorry I’m not with you tonight. My absence is out of respect for the the people of my country and those of the other six nations who have been disrespected by the inhumane law that bans entry of immigrants to the U.S.”
"Zootopia" director mentions tolerance "We are so grateful to the audiences all over the world that embraced this film with this story of tolerance being more powerful than fear of the other,”said Zootopia co-director Rich Howard.
Kimmel mocks Trump's Meryl Streep comments "This is Meryl's 20th Oscar nomination, even more amazing considering she wasn't in a movie this year...That's a nice dress by the way. Is that an Ivanka?"
Kimmel tweets at Donald Trump He remarked that the show had been on for more than two hours and Trump hadn't tweeted about it at all.
Audible's "1984" ad Zachary Quinto reads George Orwell's "1984," choosing a passage about how contact with foreign people might dispel fear and hatred. A definite dig in light of the Trump travel ban.
"La La Land" composer highlights education "La La Land" composer Justin Paul took a dig at Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos during his speech for Best Original Song. "I was educated in public schools where arts and culture were valued. And recognized and resourced. And I'm so grateful to all my teachers who taught so much and gave so much to us."
"Moonlight" director says "we have your back" Barry Jenkins in his acceptance speech for Best Adapted Screenplay said, "All you people who feel like there's no mirror for you, the academy has your back, the ACLU has your back, we have your back, and for the next four years, we will not forget you." Co-writer Tarell Alvin McRaney also shouted out "all those black and brown boys and girls and nongender conforming who don't see themselves" in movies much.
"O.J.: Made in America" director calls out police brutality "This is also for other victims, victims of police violence, police brutality. This is their story as it is Ron and Nicole’s," director Ezra Edelman said in his acceptance speech for Best Documentary.
New York Times releases ad about the importance of truth The Times released an ad in direct response to Trump's constant insults against the Times and accusations of "fake news." Watch it here.
Samsung ends VR commercial with Women's March Samsung showed off its Gear VR virtual reality headset with shots of the 2017 Inauguration, but ended with three times as many clips of the worldwide Women's March. Watch it here.
BONUS: Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway read the wrong Best Picture Unlike the other items on this list, Trump may actually be sorry he missed seeing the biggest flub in Oscar history as "La La Land" was named Best Picture at the Oscars by mistake given his anti-Oscar tweet history. Of course, his reaction to things like the show "Blackish" suggest he wouldn't be happy about "Moonlight" winning, what with its story about a gay black man and completely black cast.
The "La La Land" Best Picture acceptance speech calls out "repression" Before we found out the "La La Land" announcement was a mistake, the film's producers gave their entire acceptance speeches. Jordan Horowitz, who would later be the one who revealed the mistake, even made a small dig at Trump, saying that "repression is the enemy of civilization... the dreams we dream today will provide the love, the compassion and the humanity that will narrate the stories of our lives tomorrow."
1 of 14
And at least one moment he’d probably have enjoyed bigly
White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said this week Donald Trump wouldn't be watching the 2017 Academy Awards. That was probably a good idea, since lots of people in Hollywood had digs for the president during the award show. Even some of the ads played during the show were critical. Here are all the political moments from the Oscars.
