The best part of any speech is seeing how an audience reacts to it. It’s no different in the case of the State of the Union address. While CNN was broadcasting the switched feed, we watched the camera that was focused on getting cutaways of the audience (so you didn’t have to).
Seriously, it was probably an hour before I even knew what color tie President Donald Trump was wearing (blue!). I was too focused on what members of Congress and the Cabinet were doing when they knew they were on camera — and also when they clearly didn’t.
To start things off, Trump really took advantage of that no-traffic perk of being the leader of the free world. His speech was scheduled to be delivered at the US Capitol at 9 p.m. Eastern. He didn’t leave the White House until 8:45 p.m. Speaker Paul Ryan was all of us, checking his watch at 8:55 p.m.
Even during moments like this, after the President talked about governmental unity, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi did not seem convinced by Trump’s message.
On the other hand, Republican Rep. Steve Scalise was thriving, after getting a shout-out from the President after surviving a shooting attack last summer.
You’d think talk about the GOP’s 2017 tax victory would be enough to put a smile on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s face, but you’d be wrong. Tough crowd.
After a largely bipartisan round of applause, Democratic Rep. Joe Crowley dished out some snaps as well, channeling Elle Woods from Legally Blonde — to the begrudging bemusement of Rep. Jim Clyburn. Don’t tell me you don’t know what a snap cup is.
Perennial internet favorite and eminently GIFable Sen. Bernie Sanders really showed off his range. He was probably thinking about the speech he was preparing to give as one of five Democratic responses — one official, four unoffficial — to Trump’s speech.
Members of the Congressional Black Caucus were largely unimpressed by President Trump’s claims about African-American unemployment. But maybe it’s because he’s touted those numbers before.
At one point, President Trump tried to encourage those sitting down to stand up. Perhaps in case they’d forgotten it was an option? (They hadn’t.)
While stories about President Trump’s relationship with certain members of his Cabinet might sometimes dominate the news cycle, it looks like things between Cabinet members are friendly. Look at DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen giving Secretary of Veterans Affairs David Shulkin a playful punch.
Same, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy. Same. This speech clocked in at one hour and 20 minutes. Comparing that to data collected by the American Presidency Project, that makes Trump’s speech the longest since President Bill Clinton’s in 2000. It’s a Tuesday, guys. It’s about time to call it a night.