By Wang Qi-
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday US time delivered his first address to a joint session of Congress since his return to the White House, drawing enthusiastic applause from fellow Republicans as well as vehement protests from Democrats, in what some US media outlet calls “an extraordinary display of partisan friction.”
The speech, which lasted approximately one hour and 40 minutes, was the longest annual presidential address to Congress in modern history, and was also one of the most partisan, CNN reported. The scenes during the speech were a vivid display of the deepening divide and polarization in American partisan politics, a Chinese expert said on Wednesday.
During his address, Trump defended various policies, including imposing hefty tariffs on major trading partners, and talked about his other policy efforts, including “border and immigration crackdown” and work to end the Ukraine conflict, among others, according to the Associated Press. Trump also reiterated calls to bring the Panama Canal and Greenland under US control.
Trump mentioned China six times during the speech, with most having to do with trade and tariffs, according to a transcript of the speech published by the Associated Press. China has already launched swift countermeasures against the US tariffs. Trump also asserted that “we didn’t give [the Panama Canal] to China, we gave it to Panama, and we’re taking it back.”
Asked to comment on Trump’s remarks about receiving a message from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to help end the war in Ukraine and about greater US control over the Panama Canal and Greenland, Lin Jian, a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said that China’s position on the Ukraine crisis is consistent and clear, and dialogue and negotiation is the only viable solution to the crisis.
On the Panama Canal issue, China supports Panama’s sovereignty over the Canal, and stays committed to maintaining the status of the Canal as a permanently neutral international waterway, Lin told a regular press briefing on Wednesday. “China has never engaged in the management and operation of the Canal. Never ever have we interfered. The so-called China’s control over the Canal is nothing but a lie,” he said.
Beyond the content of Trump’s speech, US media outlets focused heavily on the stark partisan divide it laid bare. CNN reported that the Republican side of the House chamber was filled with Trump’s “adoring, boisterous supporters,” who “repeatedly leapt to their feet, chanting ‘USA, USA, USA’ and ‘Trump, Trump, Trump.'” In stark contrast, Democrats “mostly sat stone-faced, rigid and silent,” while others walked out.
The tension escalated when Texas Democrat Al Green loudly interrupted the speech within its first few minutes. House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican, swiftly ordered the sergeant-at-arms to remove Green from the chamber, prompting cheers from Republicans, Reuters noted.
“All in all, it was an extraordinary display of partisan friction, even by the standards of today’s polarized era,” commented The Hill. NBC added that “the split reactions to Trump’s address underscored how one of the nation’s most polarizing political figures has become even more divisive upon his return to the White House.”
Wu Xinbo, director of the Center for American Studies at Fudan University, told the Global Times on Wednesday that as the US new administration presses forward with its policy agenda, confrontations will likely further intensify.
Having recently returned to China after a week-long visit to the US a month into Trump’s presidency — where he met with political leaders, scholars, business figures, think tank experts and journalists in New York and Washington, Wu observed that “compared to two months ago, the polarization in American society has become even more pronounced.”
“The polarization, division, and confrontation in the US are poised to endure as a long-term trend,” said Wu.
