State of the Union: A Young Person's Guide

Credit: Pool / Pool

Last night, President Trump delivered the annual State of the Union Address to Congress, after it was postponed due to the government shutdown. Millions of Americans tuned in to hear the President outline his priorities for the year ahead. Missed the speech? Need a recap? Read on for our recap to what happened Tuesday night and what it means for young people.

The Speech

• Many women elected to Congress wore white to the address, a nod to the suffragette movement that fought for women’s right to vote. President Trump acknowledged the incredible number of women serving stating, “And exactly one century after Congress passed the constitutional amendment giving women the right to vote, we also have more women serving in Congress than at any time before.”
• President Trump will not back down on a border wall. He urged both parties to come to a solution to “secure our very dangerous Southern border.”
• In his speech, he also criticized New York’s landmark abortion law that protects abortion 24 weeks into pregnancy. He urged Congress to pass laws to stop “late-term” abortions, a term that reproductive rights activists oppose.
• The President also indicated that Congress should prioritize lowering drug costs and continuing to protect people with pre-existing conditions.
• President Trump condemned anti-Semitism and honored survivors of the Pittsburgh Tree of Life synagogue shooting.

While the President made many bold claims, sources were standing by to fact check the speech.

The Democratic Response

• Typically after the State of the Union, the opposing party of the President will give a speech in response. This year, Democrats chose Stacey Abrams, gubernatorial candidate for Georgia in 2018, to give the Democratic Response.
• Focusing on race and voting, Abrams made clear that our democracy is threatened by voter suppression. She spent a moment emphasizing this point stating, “Let's be clear: voter suppression is real.”
• Abrams blamed President Trump directly for the most recent, longest-ever government shutdown, calling it “a stunt engineered by the President.”
• The rising star of the Democratic party also discussed the party’s agenda of gun violence prevention, climate action, and immigration reform.

Similarly, Abrams was fact checked during and after her speech.

What’s Next

The State of the Union is a time for political leaders to reflect on the nation’s priorities and the hard work that we have left to do to make our communities better for everyone. It’s also a time for us as citizens to remember the power we have beyond elections to force change from lawmakers.

The debates that lawmakers of all parties are having in Washington very tangibly affect young people’s lives, everything from the healthcare protections they decide on to the immigration policy they pursue. And while we’re tired of division and partisan bickering, it’s up to us to advocate for the change we want to see.

We’re here to help you make your communities a better place. That’s why we want you to read the news, then change the news. Sign up for Grab the Mic and you’ll get weekly updates on what’s going on and how you can take action. Let’s Do This.