Joint session of the two houses is now dissolved. [gavel banging three times] the house will come to order. Shhhh. For what purpose does the gentleman from california speak seek recognition . , that was they second longest state of the Union Address in history at one hour 20 three minutes. Bill clintons was longest in 2000 at one hour 28 minutes and 49 seconds. Numbers are up on the screen. If you would buy to dial in we would like to hear from you and get your reaction. 74889214 republicans. 74889224 independence. In just a few minutes you will hear from joe kennedy and the democratic response. He will be speaking from the dimon regional vocation Tech High School in fall river, massachusetts in the southeast heart of that state. That is coming up in just a few minutes. We might have to interrupt you to get all of his speech. Greta has been monitoring news about the speech tonight. Why joe kennedy . The joe kennedy name, three term congressman from massachusetts, and he was also given the official response tonight cause he has more facebook followers than most senators and has left a trail of viral videos watched by millions, according to p olitico. Tweeted out a picture of this picture, go get him daddy. Go get em daddy. They are filing into the hall, which is connecting the two chambers on capitol hill. You can listen to the interviews that many of those lawmakers will be giving in response to the state of the union. You can go to cspan. Org and play with our 360 camera that we have set up in the balcony of statuary hall. Our 23inutes of that minute speech was on immigration. Here are the numbers. Camera live in60 statuary hall. 7498920 for democrats. 74 88921 for republicans. 74889224 independents. Joe kennedy will be starting in just a minute. We want to bring you that in its entirety. We will take your call after representative kennedy speaks. Very quickly, here is xander palmers tweet. Watching cspan is always a depressing reminder of the cataclysmic whiteness of our government. One other tweet. As usual, cspan is providing a live, no thrills sure dream of the state of the union. 20 minutes of that speech was done on immigrants immigration. In just a minute, joe kennedy will be speaking from fall river. [applause] you, thanky thank you, thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. It is an absolute privilege to join you all tonight. We are here in fall river, massachusetts, a proud American City. [applause] rep. Kennedy an American City built by immigrants. [applause] from textiles to robots, this is a place that knows how to make great things. [applause] the students who evening us here this from the Auto Tech Program at dimon regional technical school, carry on that rich legacy. [applause] like Many American hometowns, fall river has faced its share of storms. The people here are tough. They fight for each other, they pull for their city. It is a fitting place to gather as our nation reflects on the state of our union. This is a difficult task. Many have spent the last year, allous, angry, afraid, we feel the fractured faultlines across our country. We hear the voices of americans who are forgot in and for sake and forgotten and for sake and forsaken. Corporate profits fall but fail to give their workers their fair share. A government that struggles to keep itself open. Nee deep in our democracy. All out war on environmental protection. A Justice Department rolling back civil rights by the day. Supremacy proudly marching in our streets. Bullets tearing through our classrooms, concerts and ourregations, targeting sake safest and sacred places. This nagging and thinking feeling, no matter your political beliefs, this is not right, this is not who we are. [applause] rep. Kennedy folks, it would be easy to dismiss this past years chaos. Politics, but it is far, far bigger than that. This administration is not just targeting the laws that protect us, they are targeting the very idea that we are all worthy of protection. For them, dignity is not something you are born with, but something you measure by your net worth, your celebrity, your headlines, your crowd size. Not to mention, the gender of your spouse, the country of your birth, the color of your skin, the god of your prayers. Their record has rebuked our highest american ideals, the belief that we are all or the, we are all equal, that we all count in the eyes of our laws, our leaders, our god, and our government. That is the american promise. [applause] rep. Kennedy today, ladies and gentlemen, today that promise is being broken by in administration that decides who makes the cut and who can be bargained away. They are turning american lives into a zerosum game. For one to win, a nether must lose. We can guarantee americas our safetye slash net. Where we can extend health care in mississippi if we get it in massachusetts. In massachusetts. We can cut taxes if we raise them on families to model. We can take care of sick kids if we sacrificed rumors. We are bombarded with one false choice after another. Coal miners or single moms, Rural Communities are inner cities. The coast or the heart line. The daycare worker in birmingham , bitter rights rather than mutual casualties of a system forcefully rigged towards those at the top. The parent who lies awake terrified that their transgender son or daughter will be be in school. Nd bullied at shattering been a daughter in the grips of an opioid addiction. Here is an answer that democrats offer tonight. We choose both. [applause] rep. Kennedy the fight for both , because the greatest, strongest, richest nation in the world should not have to leave anyone behind. [applause] choose they we better deal for all who call our country home. We choose a living wage and a paid leave, affordable tried your a formal childcare that your family needs to survive. Trade tax that are fair, roads and bridges that will not rust away. A good education that you can afford, a Healthcare System that offers you mercy whether you suffer from cancer, or depression, or a addiction. We choose an economy Strong Enough to post record stock prices, and brave enough to admit that top ceos making 300 times their average worker is not right. [applause] rep. Kennedy we choose fall river. We choose that thousands of Americans Communities whose roads are not paid with power or privilege, but with an honest effort of good faith, and the results to build Something Better for your kids. Story. Our day our Founding Fathers and mothers set sail for oppression fleeing and intolerance. He continued with every word of our independence, the audacity to declare that all men are created equal. An imperfect promise for a nation struggling to become a more perfect union. Atgrew with every suffrage step, every freedom writers voice, with every weary soul we welcome to our shores. To all the dreamers watching tonight, let me be absolutely clear. [speaking in spanish] you are part of our story, we will fight for you and we will not walk away. We will not walk away. [applause] carryennedy america, we. Hat story on our shoulders you swarmed to washington last year to ensure that no parent has to worry if they can afford to save their childs life. You probably marched together last weekend, thousands on the streets of las vegas, philadelphia and nashville. You set high atop your moms shoulder and held a sign that in mybuild a wall generation will tear it down. [applause] rep. Kennedy you bravely say, me too. You steadfastly say, black lives matter. You wade through floodwaters, battle hurricanes, brave wildfires and mudslides to save a stranger. You battle your own quiet battles every single day. You drag your weary bodies to that extra shift so that your families will not feel the sting of scarcity. You leave loved ones at home to defend our country overseas, patrol our neighborhoods at night. Help,rve, you rescue, you. Ou heal that, more than any law or leader, debate work disagreement, that is what drives us towards progress. Mark bullies may punch and it may leave a mark, but they have never managed to match the strength of stash strength and spirit of the people united. [applause] strength and spirit of the people united. [applause] rep. Kennedy politicians can be cheered for the promises they make. Our country will be judged by the promises we keep. [applause] rep. Kennedy that is the measure of our character. That is who we are. One. F many, have and gentlemen faith. Have faith. The state of our union is enduringresilient, and. God bless you. Od bless your familys and may god bless the United States of america. Thank you. [applause] [cheering] that was representative joe in fall river,rd massachusetts. Now to hear your voices we will roll to as many calls as we can in the limited amount of time that we have. Tim, you are in you are on cspan. Er i thought the state of the union revealed the division of our parties more than anything else. It is unfortunate and pathetic that we are so separated in that respect. Find a more can respected leader for the country. The promises we keep our the measure of our character and i am not sure our president is capable of keeping promises. Sorry, i thought you are finished. Caller i agree with joe kennedy. We are measured with the brewpub by the promises we keep. I am very proud of him, it was a wonderful, wonderful president ial speech. This is nicholas in petersburg, virginia. R thank you for cspan. I have lived in china for eight years where i was working. When he had just a car whilehit by crossing the street and the state department did not help me. While the president had his parents they are saying that a e he cared so much about them, there are some any americans who are overseas and have situations like mine where i was hit by a chinese at the end the canceled my visa and contract with my employer. I hope that while i really support what the president says, i really wish that he would actually fund the state department and the embassies more so that they can provide the services to the American People who are lisa a republican, this is in texas. Proud at theo president and all of the parties troopse supporting our overseas, and even in the United States. It is just a wonderful thing, they all need our support, we just need them to know that we love them and god bless all of our United States. Kevin, new york, democrat. What did you think of the president s state of the union speech . I think the president made interesting points, but i am curious to see how accurate some of the data he was talking about. As well as howd democrats will move forward with him on immigration. Olympia, washington, independent line. Hi, i found a lack of ,olicy agenda disappointing along with sensationalizing the stories of trauma just to promote his ideology. It really just seem like it did not fit into what he was really saying, and was just meant to pull people in. Id not find their stories i almost felt like he was just using him using them for his agenda. I found it sad. Host what policy issue would you have liked to have heard from him . Caller he talked about this loophole, the ms1 i wish that he would elaborate on that an elaborate on his immigration policy. I know that is a hot topic. We really did not hear anything, you know, substantial that he would actually do in relation to his immigration policy. Host thank you for calling. John in North Carolina. What are your thoughts . Inler i am very interested immigration and i am disappointed that the president did not talk about universally verified as a means of solving the illegal immigration problem. In our area, the construction workers are entirely latinos. A young man going to trade school here can no longer study brick layer and carpenter because those jobs are available for american citizens. Host a reminder on our facebook page, a lively conversation and reaction to the president s first state of the unit address Union Address. Available for american citizens. Host cspan has the official numbers. This is the length of the first state of the Union Address in the cspan era for President Trumps. Just over 80 minutes, and that is the most in the cspan era. Lets talk about what the viewers saw and the Chamber Tonight while the president was speaking to the congress. Some lawmakers were wearing purple ribbons. That was to bring awareness to opioid and substance abuse. Called forheen members of congress to wear those purple ribbons. Mostly democrats were wearing black tonight, part of the me too movement as part of sexual harassment. Martha mcnally said she was probably wearing red tonight, as the women were wearing red, white and blue to show support for the troops and our pride in the nation. Some lawmakers, 13 democrats, decided to boycott the president s speech. Gregory meeks for the first time in 20 years, i am not in the room for the state of the union. Im still watching the speech and i will continue to hold him accountable. Joe kennedy, from the grandson of robert kennedy. There are other democratic responses as well. Senator Bernie Sanders right now on facebook and twitter doing a livethere are other democratic responses as well. Stream of his rebuttal to the president. You also have tonight maxine waters, democrat from california, giving an exclusive rebuttal on bet. Donna edwards is delivering a stream of his rebuttal to the president. On behalf of working Families Party on facebook. Part of the official democratic response comes from virginia delegate elizabeth guthman who will beginning her response in spanish. A caller mentioned that he would like to be able to fact check the president. Ifact. Com,to polit they have tonight the president s statements and how they rate them throughout his speech tonight. Because of the lengths of the president s speech, we will extend our phone calls and your reaction for a little while. The reair will begin in about 10 minutes. Alejandro, independent in miami. Caller it became clear that the democrats were not on with the a modified aud ideology but blocking the governments efforts is counterproductive. I dont mind the president s policy of america first. It all has to do with a point of view, but having lived in many countries, i have seen help other administrations protect their own interests much more overwhelmingly. I think the president s agenda is correct and i wished and hoped everybody got behind it and we would all be better off. Host the next call is timothy in oxford, massachusetts. A republican. Hi. Whoops. Caller im here. Host sorry about that. Youre on. Caller the Second Amendment really was not addressed very much. The fact one of his Campaign Promises was going to put hillary in prison. Host are you still with us . Please go ahead and finish. Caller i just wish that he would have addressed the Campaign Promise to put hillary in prison and investigator. Timothy inis massachusetts. The president is just leaving the capital. Daniel in berkeley, california, a republican. Caller im a student at the university of california berkeley and i am honestly kind of angry with how things are going. We have had a number of protests in recent years. It has been a great annoyance that our First Amendment rights have been infringed in such a way. I think that President Trump has all the power and doing everything right in regards to free speech. What is it like being a republican in berkeley, california . Caller it is not as bad as people say. It is hard. People dont like you. People think what you say is wrong and evil. It is hard. Host what are you studying . Caller russian history. Host in North Carolina, a democrat. Caller i totally agree with what joe kennedy is saying. We all do need to come together as one instead of going against the grain with each other. Agree 100 with his speech, it was excellent. Host do you find any areas of agreement with the president . Caller i do not agree with anything this president says, im very sorry to say that. In clinton,o you do North Carolina . Caller i currently work at food lion as a stocker. Host danny in west virginia, a democrat. Hi. Go ahead. Caller i just wanted to say that first off, im a disabled veteran and i am a democrat and have always been a democrat. I agreee president with everything he said. I dont say that about anybody that listens to his speech cannot get behind the president and come together as americans. Host what do you think of your senator joe manchin, will you vote for him . Caller im not. Host why not . Caller he is too liberal for me. Karen is in desert hot springs, california. Republican. Caller i wanted to let you know that i love his speech. He covered everything. I just want to thank President Trump for being our president , for caring about our people, and making the presidency and the United States honest again. Long foraited so someone like him. Im just thankful to god that he has brought him to us all. Thats about all i have to say. Host thank you. Caitlin in north pennsylvania on line. Mocrats what is your reaction . Caller im so upset with the fact that donald trump uses vague line. Terms as a way to hide the fact he is ignorant on literally every single issue he has spoken about. Climate change was not mentioned a single time and that is ridiculous. Also, Martin Omalley 2020. Host there is caitlin in pennsylvania. It sounds like he has a Martin Omalley fan club. Stephen in georgia, republican line. Caller hi, i just wanted to sort of i guess expound tonight from a more moderate point of view. President trump is not as far right or as, many on the left make them out to the. If you look at the way he worded a lot of his state of the Union Address tonight, hes willing to work with people from various ideologies throughout congress and the senate. In favor of making america better. Not necessarily from one point of view, but helping to bring people together in order to accomplish the goals of rebuilding our infrastructure and putting in place a fair an immigration system that is fair to people that want to come to this country. Thank you. A little bit of the correction. The president came in at one hour, t20, 22 secondsa little b. The president came in at one longest. Two of bill clintons addresses were a lot of it longer. In illinois, ethan. Go ahead. Caller i just wanted to point which makes it the thirdout the flaw e president said about calling it chain migration. Where as we all know, it is family reunification. It is pretty much one of the main ways that most immigrants get into america. For him to use that slur on national tv, im disgusted with him. Host ethan in algonquin. Unfortunately, we dont have any more time for calls, but if you want to continue this conversation, go to our facebook page. Lively conversation going on there. If you missed any of the speech and cant stay with us right now when we reair it, go to our website. You can watch this speech, you can watch some of the reaction from members of congress. That is also on cspan2 from statuary hall. You can watch previous speeches as well on our website at cspan. Org. Previous speeches including president s obama, johnson and nixon, etc. Lots of information on the website. Again, on cspan2 right now, reaction from other members of lotscongress to the president s speech. That is all live from statuary hall in the capital. Now, here is the president s first date of the Union Address in reair. [applause] mr. Speaker, the president of the president of the United States of america