On Tuesday, Feb. 24, President Donald Trump gave the annual State of the Union address, which became the longest of its kind at 108 minutes, in anticipation of America’s 250th anniversary.

The address is delivered to the president’s cabinet, U.S. Congress members, Supreme Court justices and his family and personal guests. It covers status reports on the current conditions of issues such as the economy and national budget, but also typically includes the president’s priorities and legislative proposals for the remainder of his term.

Trump opened the address by recalling his previous delivery of the State of the Union address one year ago, stating that he “had just inherited a nation in crisis,” according to AP News. He expressed pride in the country’s differences from that time, citing lowered inflation and reduced illegal immigration as his accomplishments.

Many politically involved GCSU students watched the address to keep up with current events and form educated opinions on the country’s condition. 

Jackson Austin-Cruse, a junior nursing major and member of the Mutual Aid Society, felt that the speech was an attempt to improve Trump’s low approval ratings.

“It felt like he was trying to appeal to centrist/people who don’t stay politically literate,” Austin-Cruse said. “Most of his claims are not backed up by any form of metrics, and I thought he was constantly trying to appeal to emotion so people would look past the corruption of his administration.”

Austin-Cruse also expressed his disagreement with the president’s recent foreign endeavors that were framed as successes in the address.

“Most Americans don’t want the U.S. to be involved in the Middle East, nor do they want billions of taxpayer dollars to go to Israel,” he said.

Lauren Jones, a senior political science and criminal justice major and co-president of GCSU’s chapter of Turning Point USA, shared her thoughts on Trump’s border security policies and how he approached the issue in his address.

“I think the biggest issue with immigration is that our system is both corrupt and slow,” Jones said. “I agree with border control, specifically being a country that has rules and regulations, but I do think that there needs to be some reform made within the immigration system itself.”

Jones believes the topics addressed should have been supported with more evidence and elaboration.

“We’re dealing with complex issues, and sometimes there needs to be more transparency to what’s going into that,” she said.

The address was delivered with an overall optimistic and patriotic tone, including references to the upcoming 2026 World Cup matches and the 2028 Olympics, both of which will take place in the U.S.

“I think everyone can agree that when the USA Men’s Hockey Team entered into the chamber, it was quite the patriotic spectacle,” said Owen Jordan, a junior economics and political science major and Vice Chairman of GCSU College Republicans.

Jordan agreed with Trump’s claims that his policies are leading the country in a positive direction, citing initiatives such as “Trump Accounts,” a program where government-funded investment accounts are opened for children, as an efficacious step toward American prosperity.

However, despite the president’s reports of a flourishing economy and overall thriving state, many students believe this to be a misguided facade. 

Charles Reynolds, a junior mass communications major and member of the Mutual Aid Society Executive Council, expressed distaste with Trump’s optimism, which he believes to be completely unsupported by facts.

“It seemed to me that his characterization of the economy and affordability was nearly completely incongruent and out of step with the reality that most working-class Americans face, even as he cloaked his speech in populist rhetoric,” Reynolds said.

Reynolds felt that the address represented a trend within the administration of being out of touch with the people they claim to represent.

 “I found the claim that Trump has shepherded a ‘turnaround for the ages’ in the American economy to be laughably inaccurate and insulting to the life of the average working citizen,” he said.

Additionally, Reynolds disagreed with the policies pushed in the address, as he believes they target and marginalize undeserving individuals and communities.

“I would stand vehemently against the continual use of taxpayer resources towards DHS [Department of Homeland Security] and ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] terror campaigns in American cities, as well as the further crackdown on voting rights based on revisionist lies surrounding the 2020 election,” Reynolds said.

The State of the Union address continues to raise political and ethical discussions, both encouraging open discussion and fostering heated debate. 

Students interested in being politically active on campus should refer to the Government and Sociology page under Student Organizations on the GCSU website.