When is a divisive speech not a divisive speech?
It’s when more than 3 out of 4 people agree with it.
That’s not what the mainstream media was seeking, of course. In CNN’s analysis, “Trump’s big night deepens America’s bitter internal schisms.” The Washington Post wailed, “Defiant Trump signals full speed ahead on divisive policies.” Time Magazine sniffed, “Troller in Chief: How Trump Used His Speech to Demean Democrats.” And as of this morning, the top headline on MSNBC.com says simply, “Trump delivers divisive address to the nation.”
Divisive. Bitter. Demeaning. Trolling.
That’s the mainstream media’s spin. And not to sound like a Scooby Doo villain, but they would’ve gotten away with it, too — sans one stubborn, unfortunate little detail: The American people don’t listen to them anymore.
The trust is broken.
And nowhere is this disconnect more clearly expressed than in the CBS News post-speech polling: “Poll on Trump’s 2025 joint address to Congress finds large majority of viewers approve.” From the article:
Most speech viewers described the president as "presidential, "inspiring" and more "unifying" than "divisive." A big majority also called it "entertaining."
Most said Mr. Trump talked a lot about issues they care about.
Most viewers who tuned in say the speech made them feel "hopeful" and "proud."
Some of the polling numbers are jaw-dropping: 76% approved of Trump’s speech. Only 23% disapproved. (Of the remaining 1% who offered no opinion, I can only assume they were playing a drinking game where they downed shots of Jäger each time the Democrats disrupted the speech and passed out within 15 minutes.)
A large majority (63%) said Trump spent time on the issues they care about. Small minorities — just 16% and 27% — said the speech made them feel “angry” or “worried.” Much larger numbers — 54% and 68% — said they felt “proud” and “hopeful.”
Over 70% of viewers said Trump’s speech was “presidential” (74%), “entertaining” (74%), and “inspiring” (71%). Slightly less, but still a big majority, called it “unifying” (62%).
Just 46% considered it “divisive.”
Meanwhile, Trump’s MAGA agenda was also a big (“Yuuge”?) hit: 77% approved of Trump’s plan to eliminate government waste (DOGE-nabbit). Just as many (77%) approved of his immigration and border policies. And despite — or, perhaps more likely, because of — the brouhaha in the White House between Trump and Zelenskyy, 73% of the audience approved of Trump’s plan for ending the war between Ukraine and Russia.
The numbers dipped slightly on his tariffs policy: 65% approved. Still, by any objective standard, capturing 65% of the audience on a hot-button issue is pretty good.
One curious stat emerged in the CBS polling: Trump still has room to move to the right on the crime epidemic. Forget about the minuscule minority (22%) who claimed that crime isn’t as bad as Trump described, and forget about the 68% who said Trump described it accurately: One out of 10 voters (10%) said crime was even worse! If Trump can capture that 10% without sacrificing his 68%, the Democrats will be badly underwater — and extremely vulnerable during the midterms.
Issues like crime carry an outsized wallop in midterms.
Oh, by the way, remember the Democrats’ incessant, ongoing childish shenanigans? Trump came to address the nation about serious, life-and-death dilemmas; the Democrats came armed with pickleball rackets. They booed and hissed and gnashed their teeth. And who could forget Reverend Rep. Al Green (who seems to be taking Trump’s Greenland acquisition WAY too seriously) getting thrown out on his [tush]?
Yeah, 76% of viewers supported his removal from the chambers. (Way to read the room, guys!)
One caveat: In today’s modern media age, Republicans are more likely to watch Republican presidents give speeches, and Democrats are more likely to watch Democratic presidents. This does skew the numbers — but not to this extent.
Just a scant majority (51%) of the people who watched Trump’s speech self-identified as Republicans. Yet 76% approved!
The math doesn’t lie: That was one helluva speech.
President Trump's speech to a joint session of Congress has radical Democrats in panic mode, and their childish protests won't stop all of the winning.
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