In the Democratic Party's usual reaction to the President's speech to Congress, Senator Elissa Slotkin warned that America's alliances were fraying and that the current trade war was a grave threat to the country's economy.
Today's world is highly interconnected. Migration, cyber threats, AI, environmental destruction, terrorism – no one nation can address these challenges alone. We require friends in every corner – and our security hinges on it," Slotkin underscored in her nationally broadcast speech, after President Donald Trump's speech to the joint session of Congress on Tuesday.
Contrasting with Ronald Reagan, her fellow Republican and former President, she said, "[Ronald] Reagan knew that actual strength meant that America had to pair our military and economic power with moral vision."
Commenting on the recent Oval Office treatment by Trump of Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky, she asserted, "Reagan must be rolling over in his grave.
Slotkin, who grew up during the Cold War, added, “As a Cold War kid, I’m thankful it was Reagan and not Trump in office in the 1980s. Trump would have lost us the Cold War,” accusing him of fostering close ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin while alienating allies like Canada.
On international leadership, she stated that although America is not perfect, she would "rather have American leadership over Chinese or Russian leadership any day of the week."
It is an age-old tradition for a member of the opposition party to give a response after the President's address. While not given from the House chamber, this response is televised nationally to offer a differing view.
Slotkin, a former CIA analyst who won a seat as senator last November in Michigan, a state carried by Trump in the presidential contest, is representative of the center wing of the Democratic Party. This wing has hardened its positions since the debacle of last year.
Looking to economic policy, she cautioned that Trump's actions could lead to catastrophic financial repercussions. "If he's not careful, he could lead us right into a recession," she warned, noting that his trade war would decimate manufacturers and farmers and increase costs for ordinary Americans.
She also assailed Trump's tax policies, contending that the planned cuts would overwhelmingly serve billionaires while transferring the cost burden to regular citizens.
Further, Slotkin was not too kind to Elon Musk, the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). She criticized Musk and "his crew of 20-somethings" for treating citizens' tax returns carelessly, without proper cybersecurity in place to ward off hacks or abuse of citizens' data.
She also criticized the cost-cutting strategy of the administration, where government workers—accountable for key functions like securing nuclear weapons, ensuring aviation safety, and conducting medical research—were laid off only to be rehired.
"No CEO in America could do that and not get fired on the spot," she said.
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