Standing ovation for Trump speech
SOME BOOS: ‘CRAZY NANCY’ POINTEDLY RIPS UP COPY
Smiling speaker reached out for a handshake. Trump didn’t return the favour.
One half of the chamber was on its feet, roaring its approval for Donald Trump. The other sat in sullen silence, broken by boos and occasional hisses, until their leader Nancy Pelosi ultimately ripped up the president’s speech.
Six weeks after he was impeached by the House of Representatives – and a day before his expected acquittal in the Senate – Trump’s annual State of the Union address was delivered in a triumphant vein, and could not have been more polarising.
Chants of “Four more years! Four more years!” greeted the president as he entered the chamber headed by his chief political nemesis in Washington: the Democratic speaker of the house.
After a slow stroll down the centre aisle, accepting backslaps from Republican lawmakers, Trump stepped up to the rostrum and handed Pelosi a copy of his speech.
The smiling speaker reached out for a handshake. Trump did not return the favour.
And at the end of his address, Pelosi – very deliberately – ripped up her copy of his speech – in a pointed political statement delivered on live television.
The bitterness between the 73-year-old president and the 79-year-old speaker is nothing new. But the latest flashpoint comes one day before the US Senate votes almost certainly to acquit the 45th president on the impeachment charges of abuse of power and obstruction of justice.
Throughout the impeachment crisis, Trump has repeatedly assailed Pelosi for her impeachment “hoax,” branding her “nervous
Nancy” and “crazy Nancy” on Twitter.
Trump leaned into Chief Justice John Roberts, who is presiding over his Senate trial, and spoke with him for a good seven seconds – an eternity in the walkup to his speech.
The shadow of impeachment hung heavy over the evening.
But Trump made no mention of impeachment or his expected acquittal in the one hour and 18 minutes speech, opting instead to focus on his “incredible” record on the economy.
“Jobs are booming, incomes are soaring, poverty is plummeting, crime is falling, confidence is surging,” Trump said, earning a prolonged standing ovation – one of dozens during the night.
Democrats remained largely silent as Trump boasted of his achievements. But when he spoke of creating an “inclusive society,” elevating “every race colour, religion and creed,” many in the opposing camp winced, hissed or jeered. – AFP