Donald Trump’s State of the Union speech has sparked debate online, with many Americans pointing out one major thing that was missing from the president’s address.
On February 24, 2026, Donald Trump delivered a State of the Union speech lasting 1 hour and 48 minutes, setting a new record for the longest address in U.S. history. He praised the state of the economy, criticized Democrats, and gave only a brief nod to foreign affairs.
“Our nation is back: bigger, better, richer and stronger than ever before,” Trump said at the beginning of his speech before praising the state of the economy, criticizing Democrats, and briefly touching on foreign affairs.
Donald Trump’s controversial State of the Union speech
Almost two hours later, he closed the speech by saying: “Our future will be bigger, better, brighter, bolder and more glorious than ever before.”
But despite the nearly two-hour address, President Donald Trump skipped a topic many Americans expected him to address. One subject that has been on the minds of many citizens went unmentioned.
Donald Trump has repeatedly hinted at the possibility of sending every American a $2,000 stimulus check, funded in part by tariffs he has imposed — a proposal many people were eagerly expecting him to mention. Yet during his speech, he did not address the topic.
The omission has not gone unnoticed online. According to VT, one person wrote “Didn’t he say everyone’s getting a stimulus check then said ‘I forgot.’ Never trust trump.”
Another commented: “I wish we would have gotten our $2,000 stimulus check would been nice [sic],” and a third asked “Where’s the $2k stimulus check he promised us?”.
It appears that, for those waiting, it may be some time before they see that money.
New round of global tariffs
Trump promoted his TrumpRx website, which aims to help uninsured Americans access cheaper medications. He also mentioned an executive order preventing Wall Street firms from buying single-family homes in bulk and addressed last week’s United States Supreme Court ruling, which struck down large portions of the reciprocal tariffs he introduced last year.
“Just four days ago, an unfortunate ruling from the United States Supreme Court, it just came down; very unfortunate ruling,” Trump said, acknowledging the four justices in attendance, including his appointees Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett.
Despite this, a new round of global tariffs set at 10 percent went into effect Tuesday. Trump described this as “fully approved and tested alternative legal statutes.” He has indicated plans to raise those tariffs to 15 percent.
