US President Donald Trump on Tuesday delivered his first address to a joint session of Congress. Over an hour and 40 minutes long, the speech, the first of his second term, was packed with his signature policy pledges - massive tax cuts, new tariffs targeting China, and a renewed push for domestic energy production. He also took a victory lap on ending DEI programs and touted national security wins, including the capture of a top terrorist.
While Republicans in the chamber couldn't stop applauding, Democrats responded with visible protests - some holding up signs, heckling, others walking out mid-speech. But the real storm brewed on social media, where memes flooded in almost instantly.
One viral meme showing a woman sitting and sulking, captioned, "Trump: 'No tax on tips, no tax on overtime, no tax on social security payments.' Democrats:"
Another viral meme took inspiration from the video-game The Witcher, featuring a game template with the word "chaos" flashing on the screen. The caption read: "The throughline of Trump's policymaking in one word/meme."
An image of Trump hugging and kissing the American flag was posted with a caption: "Just in at the #StateOfTheUnion: Trump says 'I was saved by God to make America Great Again.'"
Another viral post took aim at the irony of Trump's statements during the speech. The caption read: "Trump: Free speech is back. Trump then ordered a Democrat removed!" Accompanying the text was a GIF of a man looking completely baffled, with the word "bruh" on the screen.
In his address, Trump criticised the previous administration for allocating substantial taxpayer funds to certain animal research projects. He highlighted expenditures such as $2.5 million to study fertility in transgender mice and $1.1 million to investigate the effects of testosterone therapy on female rats in relation to drug overdose susceptibility.
Trump's slip-up on "transgenic mice" quickly became meme material. Social media erupted with jokes after he accused the Biden administration of spending "$8 million to make mice transgender."
A Trump supporter shared a GIF of Britain's Got Talent judge Amanda Holden dramatically fanning her eyes, overwhelmed with emotion. The caption read, "Every word of Trump's speech... yes!!!"
Another widely shared meme featured two stills of Natalie Portman's character, Padme Amidala, from Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith (2005). It featured her famous quote, "So this is how liberty dies... with thunderous applause," alongside the caption, "We are living in a time where this is reality."
Beyond the online frenzy, Trump's speech had major policy implications. He announced that reciprocal tariffs - matching the rates that foreign nations impose on US exports - would take effect from April 2.
Singling out India, Trump claimed, "India charges us auto tariffs higher than 100%." He claimed that his administration would impose similar tariffs on India, China, and other nations, declaring, "Whatever they tariff us, we will tariff them."
