OPINION
President Trump’s State of the Union: Midterms are About the American People
At the State of the Union, President Trump once again showed that he is the man of the people. He is the man of this moment in our nation; at this time in America as we face chaos, brokenness, and violence in our own communities.
We need hope, inspiration, as well as common sense solutions to improve our lives and restore America.
Our nation's 47th commander in chief's speech brilliantly unified the nation by putting Americans front and center, highlighting their stories of survival, heroism, victory, and even loss of a loved one.
He united the country by celebrating the USA Olympic Men's Hockey team and their Gold medals, while also honoring a100 year old veteran, retired Navy Capt. Royce Williams.
Captain Williams fought courageously in combat for our freedoms.
The president embraced those suffering in pain and let all Americans share in their tragedy knowing that their loved ones like Charlie Kirk and Iryana Zarutska would never be forgotten, but enshrined in our hearts forever.
Trump reminded us of the beauty of America: loving our neighbors, uplifting each other when we suffer, and solving problems as we work together to keep America strong and safe.
We witnessed the pain of Anna Zarutska, mother of Iryana.
While she sobbed as the president spoke about the horrific death of her daughter on a Charlotte, North Carolina train, the Democrats were callous and unemotional.
Not even the tragic death of innocent Americans can move Democrats.
Rather, they honed-in on their hate for President Trump and everything the man stands for.
Their hatred blinds them and stops them from getting anything done except screaming at our nation's chief executive, while doing everything in their power to destroy him.
It was shameful when the Democrats did not stand in support for Anna Zarutska.
They must know that their own soft on crime policies have led to the endless cycle of death of innocent people.
They revealed their true colors when they would not stand to support the family whose loved one was killed by a criminal illegal alien.
But the president rightfully called them out on for all of America to see, "You should be ashamed of yourself, not standing up."
Yes it's true, they admitted it themselves on national television: the Democrats protect foreign illegal aliens who are criminals instead of legal, American citizens.
In response, Gov. Abigail Spanberger, D-Va., began the Democratic rebuttal with accusations that Trump lied to Americans and proceeded to spread her own falsehoods that Democrats are the solution to the affordability issue:
"Tonight, as we watched our nation's lawmaker gather for a joint session of Congress, we did not hear the truth from our president," said Spanberger.
"Is the president working to make life more affordable for you and your family? Is the president working to keep American's safe both at home and abroad? Is the president working for you?”
The reality is that her new agenda in Virginia will result in a higher cost of living and businesses leaving the state as she and General Assembly Democrats plan to raise taxes.
As recently as January of this year, Virginia Democrats introduced 50 new taxes and tax increases, including income taxes, car taxes, taxes on Amazon deliveries, DoorDash, Uber Eats, and fantasy sports.
The Tax Foundation estimates that these new taxes would put Virginia in the top 10 nationally for highest investment income rates and on par with California, New York, and New Jersey.
As Mr. Trump said, the Democrats caused the affordability crisis and now they are placing the blame on Republicans:
"Now the same people in this chamber who voted for those disasters suddenly use the word 'affordability'," said the president.
"Somebody gave it to them, knowing full well that they caused and created the increased the prices that all of our citizens had to endure. You caused that problem."
Donald J. Trump is fixing the mess made by the Democrats.
He's strengthening our economy by cutting taxes, investing in our children through the Trump accounts, and rebalancing our trade relationships.
His economic policies of cutting regulations and taxes is making America the place to invest. Inflation has significantly decreased to 2%, unemployment remains low, and the president has only just begun in fixing the financial stresses of American families.
Next, he is turning his attention to our broken healthcare system, yet another burden placed on the American people by the Democrats.
Our healthcare system is benefiting the insurance companies more than the patients, and we need more transparency from our hospitals on the costs of procedures and the ability to compare prices
"Since the passage of the Unaffordable Care Act, sometimes referred to as Obamacare, big insurance companies have gotten rich. It was meant for the insurance companies, not for the people," said President Trump. "That’s why I introduced the Great Healthcare Plan."
He's taking action to make healthcare more affordable and decrease prescription drug prices.
Translation?
He's working to bring the free market to healthcare.
The State of the Union launched the messaging for the midterms. The GOP has their marching orders, and it's clear that the first order of business is to focus on all Americans.
GOP midterm candidates earnestly need to listen, share the pain of those hurting and vow to improve their lives.
While Democrats obsess about President Trump, the Republicans have an opportunity to take President Trump's common-sense solutions and forward-looking vision and let their constituents know that they will fight for them.
The GOP carries the messages of hope, healing our nation, and real results - while the Democrats continually run on despair, division, and destruction.
At CPAC, we will continue to amplify this message and ensure we reach women, Latinos, and independents to show the contrast of the two parties, and that only one party is the verifiable party of the people.
The Democrats will never stand for the American people.
Mercedes Viana Schlapp is a Senior Fellow for CPAC and former White House Senior Advisor for President Donald J. Trump
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