WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump pledged a “renewal of the American spirit” Tuesday, as he tempered his most inflammatory rhetoric while fleshing out his nationalist agenda during a landmark speech to Congress.
Transposing hardline campaign promises into a presidential key, Trump offered the most restrained and detailed explanation yet of his America-first world view.
He criticised threats against Jewish community centres and condemned the recent seemingly racially-motivated killing of an Indian immigrant, answering calls for him to speak out.
And although the 70-year-old president again promised a hard line on illegal immigration, he couched those policies in economic rather than xenophobic terms, winning sustained applause from the Republican-dominated Congress.
“By finally enforcing our immigration laws, we will raise wages, help the unemployed, save billions and billions of dollars, and make our communities safer for everyone,” he said.
Putting some policy meat on the bones, he proposed introducing an Australian-style merit-based system to reduce the flow of unskilled workers — and held out the prospect of a bipartisan compromise with Democrats on root-and-branch immigration reform.
Trump arrived to deliver his maiden address to Congress facing historically low approval ratings and embroiled in multiple crises.
Hailing what he called a “new national pride” sweeping the country, he sought to use the pomp of the occasion and the presidential pulpit to reclaim authority and course correct after 40 difficult days.
Discussing trade, Trump even enlisted Abraham Lincoln’s help, echoing what the first Republican president described as “protective policy.”
“Lincoln was right – and it is the time we heeded his words,” Trump said. “I am not going to let America and its great companies and workers be taken advantage of anymore.”
Looking abroad, Trump softened his criticism of NATO partners and vowed to work with allies in the Muslim world.
But he offered no apologies for emphasising a world order centred on the nation-state.
“We will respect historic institutions, but we will also respect the sovereign rights of nations. Free nations are the best vehicle for expressing the will of the people – and America respects the right of all nations to chart their own path.”
“My job is not to represent the world. My job is to represent the United States of America,” he said.
“But we know that America is better off when there is less conflict – not more,” he said, promising to “find new friends, and to forge new partnerships, where shared interests align.”
In Trump’s longest speech to date as president, he remained largely on message, reading his planned address almost verbatim.
Pressing his domestic agenda – and pleasing mainstream Republicans who reluctantly embraced him – Trump promised to provide “massive” tax relief for the American middle class and to repeal his predecessor’s landmark Obamacare health reform.
“When you get into a job and you do it for a while you become better at it, and I think he’s improving every single day,” said House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy.
The billionaire’s populist economic message was crucial in his November victory over Democrat Hillary Clinton – helping him sway voters in crucial Rust Belt states Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania.
Now his challenge is translating that into tangible policy steps and legislative achievements.
He outlined plans for rebuilding America’s creaking infrastructure and for high-stakes tax and healthcare reform.
But on all three issues, Trump faces a difficult balancing act with fellow Republicans, who control both the Senate and House of Representatives.
To succeed, Trump – the consummate political outsider – may have to embrace Washington deal-making.
Conservatives are desperate to pull Obamacare out by its roots, but party pragmatists are wary of dismantling a system that helped some 20 million Americans obtain health insurance.
Tensions between the executive branch and the Republican-led Congress are also simmering over Trump’s 2018 budget proposal.
Trump wants to hike defence spending by $54 billion, offsetting with cuts in foreign assistance and another non-military spending.
On all these issues Trump offered little detail about how to meet his promises worsening the country’s nearly $20 trillion national debt.
