Digby Parton noted the xenophobic emphasis of Trump's speech (Trump’s speech wasn’t the scary part: All the Republican groveling was Salon 01/31/2017:
Trump's main issue was the same as the one he ran on in 2016: immigration. And he has not softened his stance or his rhetoric at all. In fact, he has become even more xenophobic and is now pushing major curbs on legal immigration, which was not a central theme until recently. He paints legal as well as illegal immigrants as dangerous criminals and promises to end the long-standing policy of family unification. Immigrants actually commit crimes at a dramatically lower rate than native-born citizens, but Trump never lets facts get in the way of a good, lurid tale about how foreigners are ruining America.Charlie Pierce has made a couple of posts on the SOTU: the earlier one dramatic (I Watched a Ghoulish Masquerade in Washington Esquire Politics Blog 01/31/2018), the second more analytical (Trump Is Lost 01/31/2018).
Most depressingly, he framed the plight of the Dreamers as competitors with working-class (white) America, declaring "Americans are dreamers too." It's not the first time he's made clear that he doesn't like immigrants using that term because in his mind it's reserved for deserving Americans, but it was still jarring to hear all those Republicans shriek in ecstasy when he said it.
Bernie Sanders gave a great response, here from his YouTube channel:
And a version commented on in real time by The Young Turks, STATE OF THE UNION 2018: Senator Bernie Sanders Response 01/30/2017):
A Kennedy that most people didn't remember hearing about before was selected for the Democrats' official response, Watch: Rep. Joe Kennedy delivers the Democratic response to the 2018 State of the Union 01/30/2018:
I didn't find it especially impressive. But Matthew Sheffield gives him a glowing review in State of the Union response: Joe Kennedy gives Democrats a taste of what they’ve lost since Obama Salon 01/31/2018.
Lee Fang calls this to our attention:
Joe Kennedy's largest donors this cycle include Goldman Sachs, Raytheon, and Cardinal Health, the opioid distributor company. https://t.co/Jc4qTdtHR3
— Lee Fang (@lhfang) January 31, 2018
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