Congress

Trump, disruptor-in-chief, touts upheaval

Published

2 years ago

March 5, 2025

President Donald Trump declared the far-reaching, disruptive actions of his first 40 days in office as the first wave of a “common sense revolution,” blaming Democrats during his joint address to Congress on Tuesday for lingering problems and claiming credit for a wrecking ball approach that is roiling Washington and the world.

“America’s momentum is back,” Trump said in a stemwinder that lasted an hour and 40 minutes. “Our spirit is back. Our pride is back.”

While most presidents use such addresses to tout new programs, unveil ambitious initiatives or whip legislation, Trump offered a laundry list of all that he had obliterated — pacts with foreign governments, regulations, diversity initiatives.

Boasting about his early flurry of executive orders, Trump said that everything — withdrawing the U.S. from climate treaties, the World Health Organization and the UN human rights council; slashing the federal government, freezing regulations and all foreign aid — was an effort “to restore common sense, safety, optimism and wealth.”

“The people elected me to do the job, and I’m doing it,” he continued, declaring it a “a time for big dreams and bold action.”

On a day that saw the stock markets dip following Trump’s imposition of 25 percent tariffs on Canada and Mexico — and in the midst of a high-stakes diplomatic staredown with Ukraine that has allies anxious — Trump promised that it was all part of a plan to enrich the country and force neighbors to crack down on the drug trade.

“My administration has launched the most sweeping border and immigration crackdown in American history. And we quickly achieved the lowest numbers of illegal border crossers ever recorded,” Trump said. “The media and our friends in the Democrat party kept saying we needed new legislation. We must have legislation to secure the border. But it turned out that all we really needed was a new president.”

Trump last year urged Republicans to thwart a bipartisan border bill to deny former President Joe Biden a win, just months before the election. His taunting of his predecessor typified a speech that was full of all the familiar Trumpian self-congratulation, hyperbole and withering partisan attacks.

Trashing the man who defeated him in 2020 as “the worst president in American history,” Trump blamed his predecessor for illegal immigration, stubborn inflation and, specifically, the high price of eggs, and said his first month in office is the best ever. “Do you know who number two is?” Trump asked. “George Washington.”

Opening his speech by recounting his victory in last November’s election, Trump drew shouts and protests from the Democratic side of the aisle. One lawmaker, Rep. Al Green, (D-Tex.), was removed from the chamber after continuing to shout back at the president in protest of the Republican plan to cut Medicaid.

Trump groused that there was “nothing I can do” to make Democrats “stand or smile or applaud” him, claiming that his victory amounted to a “mandate like has not been seen in many decades.”

Describing the Republicans’ reconciliation bill as a package of “tax cuts for everybody,” he sarcastically suggested that Democrats should vote for the proposal they have derided as a giveaway for corporations and the wealthy.

“I’m sure you’re going to vote for those tax cuts because otherwise I don’t think the people will ever vote you into office,” Trump said.

His dismissal of the opposition party, who he needled and mocked throughout the speech, prompting several Democrats to walk out of the House chamber mid-speech, came as Republicans may need Democratic votes to avoid a government shutdown. And it underscored an inclination that has thus far defined Trump’s second term — an even greater indifference to countenancing establishment views or bipartisan buy-in for his MAGA agenda.

While declaring that lowering costs for families was his top priority, Trump devoted only a few lines to the subject. Claiming he was “working hard” to get the price of eggs back down, he implied that the job was in the hands of his secretary of Agriculture, who he addressed directly like he might have done in a boardroom scene from ‘The Apprentice.’

“Secretary, do a good job on that one,” he said, pointing at Brooke Rollins.

He continued with the reality-show style theater throughout the speech, signing an executive order renaming a wildlife refuge after a woman who was murdered by an undocumented immigrant, naming a pediatric cancer patient in the balcony an honorary Secret Service agent and admitting a star student, also in attendance, into West Point.

Trump devoted more time to defending his and Elon Musk’s chainsaw-styled slasher approach to reducing the size of the federal bureaucracy. After thanking Musk, who he described as “the head of DOGE (the Dept. of Government Efficiency),” Trump drew laughs as he listed several of the aid programs he had cut: “a $3.5 million consulting contract for lavish fish; monitoring, $1.5 million for voter confidence in Liberia; $14 million for social cohesion in Mali; $59 million for illegal alien hotel rooms in New York City.”

And he mischaracterized “shocking levels of incompetence and probable fraud in the Social Security program,” suggesting that payments were being made to thousands of deceased individuals, a debunked claim that Trump has made repeatedly.

Musk, who attended the address Tuesday night, has had to scramble to rehire several of the critical employees he indiscriminately fired, including those who oversee the country’s nuclear weapons. And the tech billionaire has acknowledged making a number of mistakes. But Trump framed DOGE’s work as part of his economic agenda.

“By slashing all of the fraud, waste and theft we can find, we will defeat inflation, bring down mortgage rates, lower car payments and grocery prices, protect our seniors, and put more money in the pockets of American families,” Trump said.

He also touted $1.7 billion in new investments in America since he took office and defended the controversial approach with tariffs that has shaken the stock market and angered allies in Canada and Mexico. Trump demanded that those countries “do much more” to tackle the flow of illegal drugs to America, which he has used as his rationale for the tariffs — despite almost no fentanyl having entered the U.S. from Canada.

In a nod to the political risk of those policies, Trump spoke directly to American farmers, who required a $29 billion bailout by Trump following tariffs in his first term. But he offered no specifics. “I love the farmer,” he declared. “Our farmers are going to have a field day right now.”

Tariffs, Trump said, “are about making America rich again and making America great again. And it’s happening. And it will happen rather quickly. There will be a little disturbance. But we’re okay with that. It won’t be much.”

Losses on the major stock indexes this week following Trump’s imposition of 25 percent tariffs on Canada and Mexico wiped out all gains for the S&P 500 since Election Day.

Turning to foreign policy some 80 minutes into his speech, Trump returned to the brash imperialism outlined in his inaugural address, vowing to wrest control of the Panama Canal away from the Chinese and suggesting that a looming independence vote in Greenland would ultimately result in the U.S. taking it away from Denmark.

“One way or the other we’re going to get it,” Trump said.

He blamed Biden for the messy 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan, the war in Gaza that he said wouldn’t have happened on his watch and for spending too much money backing Ukraine after Russia’s 2022 invasion.

Just more than 24 hours after pausing all U.S. military aid to Ukraine in an effort to pressure President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to sign an economic agreement with the U.S. and engage in peace talks with Russia, Trump read a letter Zelenskyy wrote him Tuesday expressing regret over last week’s blow-up in the Oval Office and desire to achieve peace.

“I appreciate that he sent this letter,” Trump said, offering nothing further about whether the agreement to share profits from Ukraine’s rare earth minerals was still on the table.

He criticized Europe for spending more on Russian energy than aid to Ukraine and called out Democrats — and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, in particular — for criticizing his approach of pressuring Ukraine while accepting a number of Russian conditions and even parroting Kremlin talking points.

“Do you want to keep it going for another five years?” he said, looking at the Democratic side and keying on Warren. “Yeah, yeah, you would say — Pocahontas says yes.”

Congress

Trump boosts a New York ally in a tough race

Published

21 hours ago

October 10, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

SYRACUSE, New York — President Donald Trump came to New York on Friday to help a Republican win an uphill race for governor. But his visit was also a reminder of the complicated role he plays in his party’s fight to keep control of Congress.

Trump rallied alongside GOP gubernatorial nominee Bruce Blakeman, calling on New Yorkers to fire Gov. Kathy Hochul and, referring to the state attorney general, “her totally corrupt sidekick, Letitia ‘Peekaboo’ James.”

“Your city and state are dirty, filthy places, and everybody wants to leave,” he told some 5,000 attendees at a convention center in downtown Syracuse — which, he noted, was “a short distance from the beautiful shores of Lake America.”

“You gotta get your act together, and I tell you what, Bruce Blakeman will get your act together,” Trump said.

For Republicans, the president’s appearance underscored a political dilemma that extends beyond New York: Even as Trump increasingly appears to be a drag on their ticket, they need his loyal supporters to energize their base. While voters have soured on the president’s handling of the economy and costs, he remains a potent force in turning out MAGA voters — even in an otherwise Democratic-dominated state.

“The targeting of where the president goes is not a random exercise,” Marist University pollster Lee Miringoff said. “They’re looking to stir the base without stirring the opposition. They’re picking and choosing, that’s not uncommon. For him to come to New York to help the turnout upstate is a positive for the Republicans and his base.”

Blakeman, the Nassau County executive, hasn’t distanced himself from the president — nor have most of the top officials in New York’s GOP. Nearly every Republican running a competitive congressional race in this half of the state came to Friday’s rally, eager to make their presence known.

“I’m always happy to be with the president,” said Anthony Constantino, who’s running in a nearby red district that’s inched into toss-up territory. “He’s the leader of the free world, and I’m excited to have a great relation with him.”

Some GOP operatives, however, have quietly grumbled that their candidates need to start creating some distance from the president. Republicans from other parts of the state like Rep. Mike Lawler decided that campaigning in their districts was more valuable than trekking to be seen with Trump — as did several down-ballot candidates in Central New York. Democrats, notably, have been just as eager to highlight the visit.

“This is supposed to be a swing district. And the feedback I get is that the president is very unpopular,” said Democratic Rep. John Mannion, who represents Syracuse and the surrounding Central New York area. “He still certainly will have his core base of supporters, but I do think he’s lost support here compared to what he had around the 2024 election.”

Blakeman, for his part, isn’t worried about Trump’s drop in popularity.

“Kathy Hochul should be worried about her drop in popularity,” he said before taking the stage in Syracuse. “She’s the most unpopular governor in the history of the state of New York.”

Trump’s visit came against the backdrop of a darkening political environment for New York Republicans.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement shot a man in Manhattan on Thursday afternoon, stirring fresh condemnation of Trump’s aggressive deportation policies. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist who has a surprisingly warm relationship with the president, called on him to cease all ICE activity in the five boroughs. Hochul stressed that the shooting took place with a five-year-old child present and demanded that federal authorities “provide answers.”

Immigration is one of several areas where Blakeman has hewed close to the Trump wing of the party throughout his campaign.

“I’m outraged with Kathy Hochul for taking sides with somebody who was a convicted felon, someone who was an alleged drug dealer, a gang member,” he said Friday about the shooting in Manhattan.

While Trump’s speech repeatedly careened back to the rhetoric one could expect from any of his rallies — boasts about the stock market, complaints about ‘Dumocrats’ — he did manage to seamlessly blend almost all of Blakeman’s oft-used talking points into his stump speech.

“Since Hochul took office, she’s raised your utility rates 48 times, and energy prices in New York have skyrocketed 100 percent,” Trump said. “If Bruce Blakeman gets in, he will cut your electric bills by 70, 80, 90 percent.”

The climate outside of deep blue New York City is also turning increasingly hostile to the GOP. Constantino, who’s running to succeed Rep. Elise Stefanik in upstate New York, trails his Democratic foe Blake Gendebien by 4 points, a Siena Research Institute survey released Friday morning found. A Blue Light News poll showed that nationally one in four Trump voters believe Republican candidates should break from the president in order to win in November.

The wisdom of appearing with Trump has been debated by Republicans throughout the country at a time when gas prices are high and a foreign war drags on. And New York Democrats aren’t viewing the presidential visit as a concern.

Much of Hochul’s messaging this year has focused on making sure New Yorkers know Blakeman and Trump are friends. Her most-aired TV commercial features a puppeteer saying one Republican would do the other’s bidding.

“Puppets are my life. You tell them what to say, they say it,” the narrator says. “But that’s not what you want in a governor.”

Earlier in the day during an MSNOW interview, Hochul dismissed the rally.

“It’s obviously a very political event,” she said. “It seems like a last-ditch effort to breathe some life into a campaign that’s on life support.”

Despite his low approval ratings with voters, Trump’s visit stands to light up a Republican base that Blakeman will need to turn out next month to help him defeat Hochul.

Polling has shown the governor leading the GOP nominee by as much as 18 points in this deep blue state. Yet some Trump supporters maintain the president can help generate much-needed enthusiasm for Blakeman, especially in areas of upstate New York where the Long Island native is not well known.

“We actually have the ability to win these elections, but I just don’t see the enthusiasm out there,” Conservative Party Chair Gerard Kassar said. “Hochul has won the day as far as being a terrible governor, but now we’ve got to get our people out to vote.”

Winning is still a tall order for Blakeman — especially in a tough national political environment where polls show GOP candidates in red states like Texas, Ohio and Kansas struggling against Democratic challengers.

Republicans have not won statewide in New York since George Pataki secured a third term in 2002. Since then, the GOP has lost all levers of statewide power, and Trump’s tariffs as well as his decision to launch a war in Iran have not helped him fulfill his campaign pledge of addressing voters’ cost concerns.

The president’s political woes aren’t going unnoticed.

Privately, Republican operatives grumbled that the president’s visit put swing seat candidates in an uncomfortable spot.

“There’s a lot of commiserating between folks within the party structure — why is this happening? Why is he doing this?” said one Republican operative who was granted anonymity to freely discuss the dynamic. “Then you’ve got the blind loyalists who say, ‘Yay Trump’s coming’ — people who are too politically dumb to understand the ramifications of it.”

Yet the head of the Republican party kept his message very much in line with Hochul’s.

“Please pretend I’m on the ballot,” Trump told Central New Yorkers.

Congress

Chris Murphy plans midterm travel blitz, fundraising for Nixon in Florida

Published

1 day ago

October 9, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Sen. Chris Murphy wants Democrats to go big for Angie Nixon in Florida’s Senate race — and he’s pushing to raise some “serious money” to help.

“I do believe that we’d make a big mistake if we slept on Florida,” the Connecticut Democrat told Blue Light News on Friday. “I know it feels like a longer shot, but I just think this year is looking exceptional.”

Murphy plans to hit the trail with Nixon as part of a campaign swing for Senate candidates over the next three weeks that will take him through North Carolina and Florida, as well as events with Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan, Peggy Flanagan in Minnesota and Chris Pappas in New Hampshire. Murphy will serve as a surrogate for El-Sayed in the spin room at his next debate, and said he’s “just a big believer” in the Michigan Senate nominee.

Murphy’s bullishness about a blue wave comes as Senate Democrats are pushing the boundaries of a midterm battle map that is shifting further into red territory. The Chuck Schumer-aligned Senate Majority PAC has dropped roughly $5 million apiece into Texas and Kansas over recent days, and the minority leader has included Kansas and Mississippi in his pitches to donors.

“If I were in charge, I would definitely put some resources in Florida,” Murphy said. “When you have an exciting candidate like this, it’s a good long-term investment” in growing Democrats’ activist base.

Still, Murphy stressed he’s “not making any formal recommendations” on where Schumer or top Democratic campaign groups should move their money.

“They’ve got so many mouths to feed,” Murphy said. “That’s why I’m going to try to step up and do some work on my own.”

Murphy, who is considered a potential 2028 presidential contender, has spread roughly $2.5 million across candidates, campaign arms and other organizations this cycle. That includes transferring more than $500,000 to Democrats’ three top campaign arms and 25 state parties.

Prominent Democrats have been ramping up their attention on Florida. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has funneled $250,000 toward Nixon’s campaign, along with other resources. Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) also told Blue Light News he hopes to campaign with Nixon.

But Democrats across suddenly competitive red states are clamoring for more cash and Florida is an expensive state, complicating the chances of a significant investment from national groups.

Nixon also faces an uphill battle against GOP Sen. Ashley Moody in the Sunshine State. A progressive state lawmaker, Nixon aligned herself with the Democratic Socialists of America over the summer in a state where many voters, especially those with ties to Cuba, reject such an ideology. Also, Republicans in Florida have a 1.5 million voter registration advantage over Democrats.

Congress

Democrats drop $5M into Kansas Senate race

Published

1 day ago

October 9, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Senate Democrats’ top super PAC is pushing into Kansas.

The Chuck Schumer-aligned Senate Majority PAC is launching a $5 million statewide television ad blitz starting Saturday through Election Day — the latest sign that Democrats believe the Senate map is shifting onto red turf.

SMP had signaled in recent days it could get involved in the race, telling Blue Light News late last month it was “actively thinking” about whether to wade into the state where Democrats haven’t won a Senate seat in nearly a century but where Adam Hamilton narrowly leads GOP Sen. Roger Marshall in recent polls. Internal SMP polling that found an increasingly competitive race factored into the group’s decision to spend. It will also run digital ads.

“The gap is closing in Kansas,” SMP spokesperson Lauren French said in a statement. “We are committed to ensuring families understand Marshall’s real record of making health care and basic goods more expensive for working Kansans.”

Republicans are scrambling to shore up Marshall. Senate Leadership Fund, a top GOP super PAC aligned with Republican leadership, has booked over $10 million in ads through Election Day in the state, per ad tracking firm AdImpact.

SMP’s first ad attacks Marshall for joining Senate Republicans in voting to table a Democratic-led amendment last year to release the Jeffrey Epstein files. The Senate later approved legislation to release the files by unanimous consent. It’s the latest in a slate of ads from Democrats hitting their Republican rivals over the late, disgraced financier and convicted sex offender. Marshall’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Senate Democrats’ plunge into the state comes as the midterm battle map is undergoing a major realignment. Georgia and North Carolina — primed to be two of the cycle’s premiere battlegrounds — are tilting left to the point where national Republicans are retracting spending in both states and Democrats are starting to follow suit, freeing funds on both sides to shift elsewhere.

Republicans are racing to reinforce incumbents across what was once safer red turf. SLF has also pledged $5 million to bolster Sen. Darline Graham in South Carolina.

Democrats, meanwhile, are starting to spend more in red states. SMP has dropped over $2 million on digital ads in Texas. Schumer, the Senate minority leader, has included Kansas and Mississippi in his pitches to donors.