President Donald Trump’s delivered his first State of the Union address Tuesday, when he extended an open hand across the aisle to closed fists from the Democrats. Here are three takeaways from his speech:

“Extending an open hand”

Trump announced his four-pillar plan for “America first” immigration. Proposed as bilateral legislation, the initiative calls for a path to citizenship for “Dreamers,” increased border security and an end to visa lotteries and chain migration.

Allowing citizenship for dreamers may seem like a compromise for Trump. But the lack of support shown by Democrats in the crowd, who jeered at Trump’s depiction of chain migration, shows how far legislators are from making a deal. Though immigration seems to be a pressing topic in Washington as legislators operate on an early February deadline, a long-term solution is still murky.

“Set aside our differences”

Partisanship in Congress during the State of the Union address is nothing new. But when the government is returning from a shutdown over spending and immigration policy, the plastic partisanship on display Tuesday night won’t make the mark. It was difficult to expect anything else from either side, but the manufactured diplomacy doesn’t point toward any constructive change.

“Americans are Dreamers too”

Trump’s message wasn’t based solely on policy plans and highlighting successes. He began his speech with stories of American heroes and ended with those of the American people. Although this is common practice, we should remember the people who serve alongside Trump.

In all, the speech had some positive and strong partisan messages, but there’s little time before midterm election campaigns begin. It’s time to get to work.

Daniel Loftus is a freshman broadcast and digital journalism major. His column appears biweekly. He can be reached at dploftus@syr.edu and followed on Twitter @danielploftus.

Published on January 31, 2018 at 12:45 am