All articles tagged with #state of the union
Kalshi permanently barred former New York congressman George Santos and fined him $71,356 after finding evidence of insider trading related to bets on whether he would attend the State of the Union; this marks the platform’s first such ban.
Kalshi permanently banned former Rep. George Santos and fined him about $71,356 for trading on his own attendance at this year’s State of the Union address, allegedly trying to influence Yes/No contracts with public statements and violating the platform’s non-public information rules. The action follows a prior CFTC penalty and Santos’s expulsion from Congress; Kalshi also settled penalties with three other candidates for similar trades.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney will attend Ursula von der Leyen’s State of the Union speech in Strasbourg and deliver a speech to Parliament the following day, signaling a deeper Canada–EU partnership as Ottawa pursues closer ties with democracies after a recent trade dispute with the United States and Washington-imposed tariffs.
GOP pollster Kristen Soltis Anderson argues that Trump’s economy numbers are “extraordinarily poor” and warns that sharp voter anger over the cost of living could cost him swing voters, especially as CNN polls show weak economy support and inflation concerns; she also cautions Trump’s refusal to acknowledge problems could deepen midterm losses.
President Donald Trump publicly disputed his own energy secretary Chris Wright after Wright said gas prices would not drop below $3 per gallon for years; Trump claimed Wright was 'totally wrong' and suggested prices could fall soon as the Iran conflict winds down, even as current prices hover around $4 per gallon and supply disruptions persist in the Strait of Hormuz.
Border czar Tom Homan dodged questions on CNN about how Trump could move funds to pay TSA agents, saying paying TSA is not the same as funding the entire Department of Homeland Security and insisting, “I’m a cop” as he avoided explaining the logistics or duration of any funding, while highlighting broader DHS payroll concerns amid ongoing national-security debates.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries condemned Donald Trump for calling Democrats the country’s 'greatest enemy,' telling him to 'shut his reckless mouth' on CNN’s State of the Union. The sparring unfolds amid Trump’s attacks on DHS funding, the ongoing partial shutdown, and his plan to deploy ICE to airports to aid the TSA as security strains persist.
Saturday Night Live scrapped a rehearsed State of the Union sketch after the U.S. and Israel strikes on Iran, replacing it with material that mirrored real events so closely that jokes felt like headlines—including Trump references and lines around the operation code-named “OPERATION EPIC FURY”—condensing months of prep into a moment when reality outpaced satire.
Stephen Colbert used his Late Show monologue to needle Donald Trump after the State of the Union, highlighting a ratings dip for Trump and joking that CBS should cancel him; Colbert noted his own post-SOTU edition climbed 7% from last year, quipping that people may not like watching Trump but enjoy watching Colbert dislike him.
Late-night hosts, led by Stephen Colbert, riffed on President Trump’s State of the Union ratings, which dropped about 11% from last year to roughly 32.6 million viewers; Colbert quipped that Trump is 'dragging down broadcast television' and even floated canceling him, with Fallon and Kimmel delivering their own punchlines about the political spotlight and related investigations.
More than 32.6 million people watched Trump’s State of the Union address—the longest in recent history at 107 minutes—making it the smallest audience for his second-term SOTU so far. Fox News led with 9.1 million viewers, followed by ABC (5.1M), NBC (3.6M), CBS (3.3M), MSNBC (2.4M), CNN (2.2M) and Fox’s broadcast network (2.1M). The LA Times notes polarized reactions as Trump emphasized positive economic data and immigration crackdown while the speech was extended to a record length.
Trump's Feb. 24 State of the Union drew about 32.6 million viewers, the lowest among his congressional/SOTU addresses and well below his 2017 peak of 47.7 million, though Biden's 2021 inauguration had 33.8 million and his 2024 SOTU 32.2 million. The speech ran 1 hour, 47 minutes, 40 seconds, with roughly 2.05 million viewers aged 18–34, 5.96 million aged 35–54, and 23.62 million aged 55+. Nielsen tracks both network broadcasts and streaming; figures may be updated as data evolves.
In the State of the Union, President Donald Trump called New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani a “nice guy” despite previously labeling him a communist, signaling a cordial if unsettled relationship. Trump used the address to push GOP priorities, including voter ID and other policy points, while Mamdani has avoided direct confrontation and has maintained regular, cautious contact with the president.
Republicans push a post-State of the Union clip on immigration to frame it as a defining campaign issue and mobilize their base, while Democrats counter with criticisms of Trump’s policies and emphasize that the economy remains the dominant factor shaping the midterm outcome.
A MoveOn-led counter-State of the Union rally on the National Mall drew Democratic lawmakers and progressive advocates to challenge Trump’s address, highlighting inequality and policies’ harms, with organizers claiming millions watched online and speakers urging a progressive alternative.