Trump spoke to a joint session of Congress last night, so it wasn’t really a State of the Union address. (That’s for next year, after he has completed a full year in office and can speak with full authority about his president during the preceding year. .) However, no matter what one calls it, it was the best ever. Trump was on fire, the tone was incredibly optimistic, and the Democrats did not show themselves to advantage.

Here are my quick takeaways, offering a sort of overview of the speech:

Trump was having fun, and he was having fun because he knows that his first 43 days in office have been extraordinarily successful. He’s keeping his promises in a way never before seen in an American president, and the American people like what’s happening.

One of the sweetest things about listening to Trump list his accomplishments and future plans was knowing that the Democrats created Trump. Had they let him govern without drama from 2016-2020, he would have been a centrist, at most. He would have leaned left socially, while being a pragmatic conservative regarding the economy and foreign policy.

However, thanks to their relentless persecution, they created a man who despises them and takes great pleasure in thwarting them.

YouTube screen grab.

And O.M.G.! Did Trump thwart them. He pointed out that he could cure cancer and Democrats wouldn’t applaud him, and was absolutely right. That made him look prescient, and them look like people who oppose a strong economy, an actual border, low crime, arresting murderous terrorists, destroying the cartels, 13-year-old brain cancer survivors, etc. It was not a good look.

Even worse was the showboating in which Democrats engaged. They started off by pretending they were at a WWE event, with Trump cast as the heavy in a black outfit. They jeered and booed, right until Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, with enthusiastic support from JD Vance, kicked the crazed Rep. Al Green out of the chamber. Suddenly, they became very subdued. It was a reminder that Dems talk big, but prefer other people to take the fall for their policies.

The other thing Democrats did was wave around little tennis paddles with words and phrases such as “False” and “Save Medicaid.” Notably, after about 45 minutes, the paddles disappeared. Nothing shows a failed strategy more than having its supporters quickly abandon it.

But the most wonderful thing was getting close-ups of sad Democrats. If I were tech savvy, I’d do a montage of Nancy Pelosi sucking lemons, Bernie Sanders looking simultaneously bereft and angry, Ilhan Omar looking shellshocked, and so many other great reaction shots. These were people who suddenly realized that they were at the end of the line.

As for Trump, he revealed himself (again) to be a master showman, knowing which points to emphasize, constantly making digs at the Democrats who had gone far beyond normal partisan politics to try to throw him in prison, and making really funny quips. (I especially enjoy his little joke to RFK about Americans being healthier than we realized after he listed the millions of Americans over the age of 100 and even over the age of 300 who are still on the Social Security rolls.)

Trump’s energy was phenomenal, of course. I was tired by the end of the speech, and I was reclining in comfort at home. Nothing could more effectively have highlighted the difference between the vital Trump and the barely-alive Biden—nor reminded us how the Democrat establishment relentlessly lied to the American people about Biden’s vigor.

In terms of the speech’s content, there was little new to me, because I follow politics at a minute-by-minute level. However, if I were a normal American who isn’t so obsessive, the talk was a great rundown of Trump’s extraordinary accomplishments in 43 days. Americans learned that he’s killing woke, revitalizing America’s energy sector, shrinking the overpowering government, working to reduce crime, securing the border, protecting women and children, and generally undoing the madness of the past four years.

Most importantly, Trump, albeit sometimes incoherently, explained his tariff policy. Ordinary Americans are worried that tariffs will boost inflation. Trump explained the massive tariff imbalances that the world imposes on America, as opposed to America charging the rest of the world. People hate unfairness. Trump showed that the current system is unfair and explained that he’s just leveling the playing field.

Trump also helped explain how he’s going to make sure that Americans don’t suffer too much for his tariff policy, although he acknowledged that it may require an adjustment. Businesses anxious to maintain access to the American market will bring their factories here, bringing jobs with them—and, although Trump didn’t say it, bringing corporate taxes, too. Our geopolitical enemy—i.e., China—will lose its monopoly over essential items such as steel and drugs, while our friends—e.g., Taiwan—will be able to protect their industries by bringing their semiconductors here.

Trump also explained that lowering energy costs will lessen inflation, and that’s true. Energy underlies everything. When it’s expensive, everything is expensive. By unleashing our energy sector, prices will drop.

And of course, DOGE’s ending government waste will save taxpayers money. Combined with promised tax cuts, people will have more money, which will blunt the effect of the tariffs.

Overall, it was a delightful speech and, outside of Democrat circles, should be very well received.