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Presidential speechwriters sharply split late Tuesday after President Donald Trump delivered a record-breaking State of the Union address, drawing praise from allies and prompting early exits from some Democrats.
During his address, Trump focused on immigration enforcement, economic concerns and global trade issues as he occasionally sparred with Democrats like Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar, who along with fellow Squad member Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan left the chamber early, while Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, was booted after waving a sign condemning a recent Trump social media post.
Gene Hamilton, a former deputy White House counsel who has written speeches, told Fox News Digital that Trump delivered a “resounding speech” and “could not have been more clear about the current state of our great nation.”
“A vision of hope, prosperity, and strength, driven by strong borders, a strong economy, and a love of country.”
Hamilton said the speech was “juxtaposed” against a swath of the Democratic caucus in the chamber that “wouldn’t even stand for the provision that the government’s first duty ‘is to protect American citizens, not illegal immigrants’.”
“Donald Trump saved this country with his election in 2024. His administration will keep working every day to deliver real wins for the American people,” said Hamilton, who worked in the first Trump administration and now works with America First Legal.
On the other side of the political spectrum, former Biden speechwriter Dan Cluchey told Fox News Digital that Trump did “less than zero to dispel the notion that he is living in his own reality.”
Asked if Trump succeeded in addressing the immigration crisis and affordability criticisms well enough, Cluchey said that while Americans endure “skyrocketing grocery, energy, and health costs, rising unemployment, and an economy that is growing more slowly today than in any year under President Biden, his only play is to tell families not to believe their own pocketbooks.”
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“[That] doesn’t work,” said Cluchey, who co-hosted a SOTU watch party and speechwriting workshop across town at Georgetown University during Trump’s speech.
Asked about Trump’s ability to convey what he believed to be his administration’s successes, Cluchey said that dynamic “doesn’t really work when the claims you fabricate don’t square with people’s real lives.”
“A willingness to lie brazenly about anything and everything has some utility when you’re campaigning, but it doesn’t hold up when you’re governing — and people are actually living through the constant stream of chaos, cruelty, and ineptitude,” Cluchey said.
Cluchey added that Trump did not do enough to combat his critics, saying he instead came across as “self-obsessed and delusional as he always does.”
Unlike Hamilton, Cluchey believed Trump failed to change any minds in America with his remarks.
Hamilton separately countered that Trump did indeed reiterate that he has delivered on campaign promises.
“For all the haters and ‘black-pillers’ who run their mouths incessantly, just one year of President Trump’s successes has dwarfed the accomplishments of entire administrations that preceded him,” he said.
Michael Ceraso, a Democratic strategist with a background in speechwriting who worked with presidential candidates Pete Buttigieg and Bernie Sanders, offered a slightly different perspective, saying that as a Democrat, he wants a president who works toward collaboration and not someone who “speaks in monologues.”
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“As a voter, I may not like him. I may find his long form exhausting. But when he speaks, he never wavers from American exceptionalism,” Ceraso said.
“I see someone protecting our cities against those he deems a threat to democracy, revving up the economy, managing global partners, and defeating terrorism.”
Ceraso said, however, he misses former President Barack Obama and his message of intellectualism, curiosity and togetherness.
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“As a voter, I believe both parties are bad for this country.”
“So I go with the guy who entertains me,” Ceraso said.
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