By Talia Lissauer, The Berkshire Eagle
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Rep. Richard Neal criticized President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address, saying the speech misrepresented the nation’s affordability crisis and used misinformation to advance his agenda.
Rather than attend the annual address in person, Neal, D-Springfield, opted to watch from his office, saying he didn’t want to support the president’s narrative that America is in a “golden age” or take part in what he described as “theater.” Neal was one of several Democrats who skipped Tuesday night’s speech.
In a State of the Union address lasting 107 minutes, Trump said the nation is “stronger than ever” and focused on economic growth, immigration enforcement and national security.
Neal said he did not want to lend his support by being physically present as the president criticized Democrats in the chamber, but like the millions of Americans watching at home, he wanted to listen and draw his own conclusions.
“Part of it has become theater,” Neal said. “You can see the way that the president referred to Democrats who were sitting there. I thought that when you look at it, that part of it was certainly not only dismaying, but it lacked common courtesy. I’ve never seen that before.”
Neal said his suspicions were right and the speech was filled with both misinformation and deliberate falsehoods.
“It’s the chaotic nature of the presentation that is dismaying,” Neal said.
He was particularly concerned by Trump’s interpretation of the impact of tariffs.
“The president’s continued argument that tariffs are helpful to the American economy is not based upon evidence, and I think that he doubled down on it last night,” Neal said.
He said he concluded that much of what was said “was not based upon reality,” adding that he wants Trump to “acknowledge what the cost of living has become because of the tariffs,” pointing to Federal Reserve Bank of New York research estimating that roughly 86 percent of recent tariff costs were borne domestically.
“When you look at affordability everywhere, it’s subject to challenge, and the president seems to believe that if he says something, it’s always true and it’s always accurate, when I think that it was just the opposite [Tuesday] night because of the misinformation, as I noted a couple of instances for sure about disinformation,” Neal said.
Neal said he is concerned that many will believe what was said because it’s coming from the president and many have gotten used to misleading and false claims by the administration.
“In a representative democracy, we encourage people to be discerning about what they read and hear and then how they react, and I think that last night, that the president’s presentation does not square with the idea that less than four out of 10 voters agree with him,” Neal said.
