🇺🇸“SOTU Preview” Edition

President Donald Trump is preparing to deliver a triumphant State of the Union address to a nation that, according to polling, appears to have accidentally misplaced its enthusiasm. With his approval rating hovering around 36%—and an especially impressive 26% among independents—Trump will use the speech to reassure Americans that the economic golden age is definitely happening, they just can’t see it yet.

The timing is awkward. His signature tariffs were just tossed out by the Supreme Court, his immigration crackdown sparked outrage after federal agents killed two U.S. citizens, the Epstein files continue to drip-feed scandal, and parts of the government have shut down. But aides insist the real problem isn’t the policies. It’s that Americans simply haven’t been properly informed how great everything is.

Trump, for his part, has already previewed the theme: he has “won affordability,” which will come as welcome news to voters still struggling to afford things. He’s also warned that if the Supreme Court, foreign governments, or reality itself continue to interfere, he’ll just impose even more tariffs, harder.

Ultimately, the speech will attempt the difficult task of convincing Americans that the economy is booming, the controversies are imaginary, and the skepticism is unfair, because, as Trump himself and his supporters have explained, even if he cured cancer, critics would still complain he didn’t do it sooner. It’s an especially odd argument for a President that unilaterally shut down cancer research.

Bill Bramhall - Tribune Content Agency

Clay Bennett - Tribune Content Agency

Rob Rogers - Tinyview Comics and Andrews McMeel

Robert Ariail - Andrews McMeel

Tim Campbell - Tribune Content Agency

Chris Britt - Creators

Steve Breen - Creators

Michael Ramirez - Creators

Steve Sack - cagle.com/sack

A recent House report concluded that the fatal shootings of Renée Good, a mother of three, and Alex Pretti, an ICU nurse, were not unfortunate accidents but rather what happens when you combine mass deportation quotas, masked federal agents, and what critics described as a helpful workplace culture of “absolute immunity.” According to the report, the killings were the predictable result of an immigration crackdown that treated escalation as a feature, not a bug.

Even more reassuring, investigators say the administration responded with its signature transparency strategy: obstruct investigations, obscure agent identities, and let the same agencies involved investigate themselves, because who better to determine whether you did anything wrong than you? Officials have denied wrongdoing, while critics noted that bystander videos inconveniently contradicted the official version of events.

In response to the backlash, the Department of Homeland Security announced reforms, including body cameras, introduced after the shootings, presumably to help capture future explanations. Meanwhile, families of the victims and lawmakers accused the administration of attempting a cover-up, while officials insisted everything was under control, aside from the protests, the public outrage, the federal investigations, and the two Americans who are no longer alive.