Chris Coons is a Democrat representing Delaware in the Senate.
On Feb. 24, I attended President Donald Trump’s State of the Union, alongside my Republican and Democratic colleagues, plus millions of Americans watching at home. Whether you liked what you heard or disagreed with as much of his message as I did, I want to share with you why I went and what I’ll be taking away from his speech.
President Trump spends most of his time surrounded by people who agree with him, who praise him and who seem never to question him. The State of the Union is one night when no president gets that luxury. It’s when a president is supposed to look at those who disagree with him in their eyes and explain his vision for everyone in our nation — not just those who voted for him.
The president claimed that the state of our union is strong, that costs are down and that the economy is booming, but that’s not what I hear from Delawareans. I was hoping for a unifying speech that would speak to the concerns you share with me every day: the lack of opportunity in an economy that doesn’t work for you, the loss of security that comes with losing health care coverage and the injustice of unaccountable and out-of-control U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
Delawareans and Americans across the country who believe our nation is on the wrong track looked for reasons for hope from President Trump and found none.
One of those Americans was my guest at the speech: Dr. Neil Hockstein. A Delaware native, Dr. Hockstein is not only dedicated to healing his own patients, but he’s also fighting for patients up and down Delaware. As chair of the Delaware Health Care Commission, he’s strengthening rural health care and trying to bring more health care professionals to our state. He’s seen firsthand how President Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” is making it harder for many Delawareans to afford health care — crowding emergency rooms and making care more expensive for everyone.
As those of you who watched from home know, it was a very, very long speech, yet it had few details and even less truth.
President Trump claimed that he’s made many medications cheaper in America than anywhere else in the world — but he hasn’t. He vaguely gestured to giving Americans money to pay for health care but gave no information on what that means. He never addressed the millions of working Americans, children and older adults who’ve had their health care ripped away by Republicans’ policies. He gave no reassurance to the families who are now paying double or triple what they were last year for even the most basic health insurance.
He said the economy is “roaring.” It doesn’t feel that way to me, and if you’re like most Americans, it doesn’t feel that way at your kitchen table. If you’re a small-business owner struggling with President Trump’s chaotic tariffs, I cannot imagine feeling better after listening to the speech.
Aside from the few unifying moments in his speech when we honored the incredible Olympians and veteran heroes in the room, President Trump never moved beyond bluster and empty promises for our military. He gave no clarity as to why he’s deployed a massive armada near Iran. The president seems to be on the verge of driving us into another major war in the Middle East, but he didn’t take time to explain why it would be in America’s interest.
President Trump ran on lowering costs, making America healthy again, releasing all the Epstein files and keeping us out of foreign wars. He’s failed on every front.
If he wants to restore Americans’ belief in the future of our country, he should stop with the self-congratulations and work on fulfilling those promises.
I’m ready to work with him, with Republicans and with Democrats to address the real challenges you face every day. In the Senate, I’ve put forward bipartisan bills on health care, immigration, affordability and more — because I know that’s what you sent me there to do.
After all, it’s not presidents and senators who get to decide what the state of our union is — it’s people like you, and that’s why I always look to Delawareans to get a true sense of how our country is doing. I will keep listening to you about what I can do to make our nation stronger for everyone, so please don’t hesitate to reach out.
Reader reactions, pro or con, are welcomed at civiltalk@iniusa.org.
