In a widely publicized release, the complete transcript of the White House press briefing led by Karoline Leavitt following President Trump’s address to Congress is provided below.

The briefing addressed a variety of issues—from the president's groundbreaking speech and his comments on tariffs and trade policies to discussions about executive actions and domestic economic initiatives.

While the emphasis of the briefing is on American policies, officials pointed out that such strong trade measures and tariff policies can impact global trade dynamics, which are essential to the economic structures of numerous countries, including Thailand.

The transcript is included in its entirety to offer an unfiltered account of the administration’s comments.

“Good afternoon everyone, how are you today? I apologize for being late—it's quite an eventful day, and I was with the president discussing the news. I’m eager to answer your questions, but first, I wish to highlight President Trump’s remarkable and historic speech from last night. The American public and the global audience witnessed President Trump powerfully articulate his vision for renewing the American dream in a record-setting joint address to Congress, which was overwhelmingly well-received by Americans. A CBS poll indicated that an impressive seventy-six percent of viewers approved of President Trump's remarks last night.

The president highlighted that he has taken over four hundred executive actions on his core promises. Expectations were high, and according to the latest polling from The Daily Mail, President Trump is surpassing them. His popularity has reached unparalleled heights; more Americans feel the country is on the right path than on the wrong one. Everyday Americans appreciate this president because he speaks candidly, regardless of the consequences—and he certainly did so last night.

President Trump provided a realistic appraisal of the economy while revealing how severely Joe Biden has mishandled it, leading to the most significant inflation crisis in forty years. The president was forthright about our situation while assuring the nation that relief is forthcoming, as he declared his intention to make America affordable again. Last night, we saw who inspires the president to strive tirelessly each day. President Trump drew attention to individuals like Mark Fogle—an American educator detained by Russian authorities—who was freed through his efforts. Had Joe Biden accomplished that, there would have been applause from the chamber.

He also mentioned Payton McNab, whose moving story galvanized President Trump to advocate for the exclusion of men from women’s sports, and honored Allison and Lauren Phillips—the relatives of Lakan Riley—by signing the Lake and Riley Act to ensure her memory endures. Among other remarkable and unexpected highlights, President Trump commemorated the life of Joselyn Nungay, a victim of a brutal murder by gang members, ensuring her legacy with the renaming of a National Wildlife Refuge in Texas in her honor. One of the most surprising moments of the evening featured DJ Daniel, an impressive thirteen-year-old battling brain cancer, who had his dream realized by becoming an honorary secret service agent after nearly four years.

President Trump also sought justice for the families of the thirteen American service members who lost their lives at Big Gate during the disastrous Biden-led withdrawal from Afghanistan—one of the greatest humiliations in our nation’s history. He announced the detention of Muhammad Sharif Fula, the individual responsible for that horrific attack, who was brought to Dallas Airfield earlier this morning on his first day in office. President Trump’s National Security team, across the federal government, prioritized intelligence gathering to track down this perpetrator, collaborating with regional partners like Pakistan, which was crucial in identifying him in the Borderland area late last month. Muhammad confessed to his crimes related to Big Gate and other attacks in Russia and Iran, as well as to Pakistani authorities. U.S. law enforcement officials visited Pakistan over the weekend, where he again admitted his guilt to the FBI. As President Trump noted last night, “This killer will now face the swift sword of American justice for these atrocities here on United States soil.”

Joe Biden was held responsible for the flawed withdrawal; he had three years to apprehend this heinous terrorist and failed to act. President Trump built strong relationships with the Gold Star families, pledging accountability, and he delivered on that promise last night. He spoke to those families yesterday ahead of his speech in a deeply touching call to share this significant information. As President Trump asked in his address, "How could anyone possibly oppose any of the measures I am taking?" Unfortunately, it appears the contemporary Democratic Party could. The conduct of the Democrats last night was utterly disgraceful and showcased their profound disconnect with the American people. It represented one of the most shameful moments in the history of presidential addresses in that distinguished chamber—what was meant to be a unifying moment for our nation turned into a scene where Democratic members of Congress shouted at the President, who had just been overwhelmingly reelected by their own constituents, walked out of the chamber, and most reprehensibly, disrespected the American populace.

Democrats didn’t rise to defend the integrity of women’s sports; they were unable to applaud for a girl injured by a male player on a volleyball court. They opposed the plight of an innocent child successfully battling brain cancer. They resisted the elimination of taxes on tips within Social Security, failed to support tax cuts for hardworking Americans, and could not even clap for two mothers whose daughters were murdered by illegal immigrants. One of the very few moments that moved Democrats to stand was when it involved cheering for Ukraine, rather than for America. Last night clarified much for our country: the Democrats revealed themselves as the party of absurdity and animosity—the party that puts America last. Their fixation on Trump has prevented them from celebrating America, and we will not let them forget this.

It's not just the Democratic Party—the mainstream media also remains out of touch. Last night, MSNBC's Nicole Wallace disgracefully connected a thirteen-year-old boy suffering from brain cancer to an attack on the President concerning January 6th during CNN's initial segment of the address, which she labeled as divisive. President Trump was not the one being divisive—the Democrats were, and CNN’s own viewers contradicted their narrative, with 69% of them reporting a positive reaction to the President's speech in a post-speech poll. It’s disheartening and frankly pathetic that Democrats and the legacy media allow their animosity for the President to overshadow their commitment to our country. Nevertheless, the President will persist in unifying this nation through policies grounded in common sense that uplift all Americans.

We have a new individual in our media seat today—Mary Margaret Olahan, the Daily Wire's inaugural White House correspondent. Congratulations, Mary Margaret. Founded a decade ago by Benao, the Daily Wire now boasts over one million paid subscribers, a monthly network reach of one hundred thirty-eight million, and has grown into a powerful conservative multimedia giant. They are currently the fifth largest podcast network worldwide and host several of the most popular shows.”