'America's Enemies are on the Run': The SOTU Spotlight on National Security
“Jobs are booming, incomes are soaring, poverty is plummeting, crime is falling, confidence is surging, and our country is thriving and highly respected again! America's enemies are on the run, America's fortunes are on the rise, and America's future is blazing bright,” Trump said to open his third State of the Union address on Tuesday.
While the topics discussed included a wide range of national issues, the military was heavily featured both in Trump’s talking points and the guests he invited to the event.
So where does Trump’s military stand? On top of the rest of the world, according to Trump.
“Our military is completely rebuilt, with its power being unmatched anywhere in the world.”
During the president’s first three years in office, his administration invested $2.2 trillion in the United States military including $738 billion secured for the fiscal year 2020 alone (sic.)
“We have purchased the finest planes, missiles, rockets, ships, and every other form of military equipment -- all made in the United States of America. We are also finally getting our allies to help pay their fair share.”
Trump even worked with Congress to expand the United States military by an entire branch. The Space Force is the first new branch in the United States Armed Forces since President Truman established the Air Force.
Trump's surprise SOTU guests: A Tuskegee Airman and the grandson following in his footsteps
With this military might, Trump highlighted, the United States killed two high-profile terrorists.
According to Trump under his presidency, the ISIS territorial caliphate “has been 100 percent destroyed” and ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi — a “bloodthirsty killer” — was killed in a nighttime raid in October of last year.
And Qasem Soleimani, described by Trump as “the Iranian Regime's most ruthless butcher, a monster who murdered or wounded thousands of American service members in Iraq,” was killed in a “flawless precision strike” by the United States military.
“Our message to the terrorists is clear,” Trump said. “You will never escape American justice. If you attack our citizens, you forfeit your life!”
However, this power, Trump promised, would not be used to serve other nations as a law enforcement agency — which is the role he currently perceives American troops playing in Afghanistan.
“I am not looking to kill hundreds of thousands of people in Afghanistan, many of them innocent. It is also not our function to serve other nations as a law enforcement agency,” Trump said. “These are warfighters, the best in the world, and they either want to fight to win or not fight at all. We are working to finally end America's longest war and bring our troops back home!”
Concerned Veterans for America issued a release before the address had even concluded calling on Trump to follow through on this promise to end the war in Afghanistan.
“We were pleased to hear President Trump reaffirm his commitment to bringing our troops home from Afghanistan and we urge him to resist those who will inevitably attempt to impede his efforts to end our longest war,” Senior Advisor Dan Caldwell said in the statement.
But like CVA, Trump did not wait until after the address to begin working towards his goals. He surprised a military spouse in the audience by announcing that her husband had returned from deployment.
"There is one more thing," Trump told Amy Williams. "Tonight we have a very special surprise. I am thrilled to inform you that your husband is back from deployment. He is here with us tonight and we couldn't keep him waiting any longer."
Williams turned to find her husband, Sergeant First Class Townsend Williams, descending the stairs of the chamber of the United States House of Representatives behind her.
Trump’s reports of military prowess were well-received by Republican members of Congress who repeatedly responded to Trump’s statements with standing ovations. Other members of Congress, were less supportive.
This former Marine, now a Congressman, walked out of the SOTU
“I left the #SOTU after Trump—a draft dodger who has mocked Sen. John McCain, Gold Star families, and soldiers with traumatic brain injury—started talking about the good he has done for our military,” Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., said in a tweet after the speech concluded late last night.
“Every day, America's men and women in uniform demonstrate the infinite depths of love that dwells in the human heart,” Trump said. “Our spirit is still young, the sun is still rising, God's grace is still shining, and my fellow Americans, the best is yet to come!”