As Donald Trump prepares to deliver his address to Congress tonight, the mood in his team at the White House is one of celebration. His administration, barely a month old, is eager to highlight its victories. Alina Habba, a key Trump adviser, previewed what the American people should expect from his speech.
“There’s obviously a tremendous amount of wins that we’ve had in the Trump administration since we started,” she said. “If you look at the DOGE cuts, we’re going to mention those. We’re going to talk about a lot of things. Frankly, there’s so much good that has happened.”
But this, according to Habba, isn’t just about recounting past successes—it’s about looking ahead. “I know we have a lot of special guests that we’re excited to welcome, the first family. And really what we’re doing is looking forward. President Trump has done such a tremendous amount of work in just over a month here.”
For Habba, the address is an opportunity for the country to take stock. “I am so honored and proud, and I think the American people are honored and proud, and we need a recap of that, but also he’s going to look forward at what he’s going to be doing for this country.”
Tariffs and Inflation
But while the administration projects confidence, the inevitable question arises: Do tariffs risk fueling inflation?
For Habba, the real issue isn’t Trump’s policies, but what he inherited. “First of all, the problem that we have in our economy at this moment is if you look at what Joe Biden just did in the last administration, we are not even a quarter in and we are dealing with a mass murder of chickens, which has created a ridiculous issue for American people, where they don’t even have eggs.”
The American economy, she suggests, is still shackled to Biden’s failures. “And we are trying to correct all these things, so until we get rid of Biden’s economy—which doesn’t just disappear on the day that the president is sworn into office—until we fix that, and we will fix it, you know, we’re going to see repercussions of his behavior and his decisions.”
Federal Layoffs: A Tough Line on Veterans?
Meanwhile, Democrats are set to use their own guests tonight to highlight what they see as the human costs of Trump’s fiscal policies. Among them: federal workers who have been laid off due to DOGE cuts. Some are veterans.
Is the president concerned? Does the administration have a plan to support them?
“As you know, we care about veterans tremendously,” Habba insisted. “I mean, that’s something the president has always cared about, anybody in blue, anybody that serves this country.” But she quickly pivoted to the administration’s broader philosophy on government spending.
“At the same time, we have taxpayer dollars. We have a fiscal responsibility to use taxpayer dollars to pay people that actually work. That doesn’t mean that we forget our veterans by any means. We are going to care for them in the right way, but perhaps they’re not fit to have a job at this moment, or not willing to come to work, and we can’t—you know, I wouldn’t take money from you and pay somebody and say, sorry. You know they’re not going to come to work. It’s just not acceptable.”
Tonight’s address will offer the president a chance to set the tone for the coming months. If Habba’s preview is any indication, it will be a mix of triumphalism, defiance, and a promise of more to come.
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