President Donald Trump delivered a State of the Union address Tuesday night filled with inspiring anecdotes of Americans overcoming hardships and unthinkable tragedy. Here are three takeaways from the speech.

Trump is looking for common ground

The president put forward a litany of proposals with across-the-board popularity, such as supporting infrastructure reform, lowering drug prices and funding workforce development.

He even endorsed some decidedly liberal ideas, including paid family leave and prison reform. The president loves wins, and these are issues Democrats will have a tough time fighting him on. The big exception, of course, is Trump’s signature issue: immigration.

His rhetoric remains unabashedly right-wing

Trump used emotional appeals to push for stronger immigration rules, an issue sharply dividing the two parties. The speech’s centerpiece was his four-pronged immigration plan in an address littered with patriotic imagery and a “U-S-A!” chant characteristic of his campaign rallies in 2016.

Trump also discussed his party’s recent achievements, but gave credit to specific people rather than himself. He took a subtle jab at the NFL’s National Anthem kneelers and made repeated appeals to Christianity and respect for the military before segueing to the latter portion of his speech, marked by tremendously optimistic rhetoric. He truly believes, whether or not you agree, the country will continue improving while he’s in charge.

The Democrats aren’t united enough to take down Trump — yet

Although they spent most of the speech sitting, it’s clear Democrats are fired up this year. In fact, five delivered responses to Trump’s speech. Joe Kennedy III — the great-nephew of former President John F. Kennedy — spoke despite being considered a moderate, and liberal Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders responded, along with other key Democrats.

The opposition to the president is splintered, but it echoes a time when the Tea Party and the establishment fought for control in the aftermath of the GOP’s utter decimation in 2008. The Republican Party turned right around to kick Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi out of her position 10 months later. So while the Democrats may not have a frontrunner candidate for 2020 or a cohesive party platform, they’re not out of time.

The coming weeks will tell whether Trump’s tweets will contradict the messages in his speech. Regardless, this was a unifying night for the U.S., and one that I hope will start meaningful conversations across the aisle.

James Pezzullo is a sophomore public relations major. His column appears biweekly. He can be reached at jpezzull@syr.edu and followed on Twitter @JamesPezzullo.

Published on January 30, 2018 at 11:48 pm