President Donald Trump made a national address where he blamed the former administration for the affordability crisis and touted his economic progress.

The president highlighted many of the statistics that showed improvement from former President Joe Biden’s term compared to his second term.

‘One year ago, our country was dead. We were absolutely dead. … Now we’re the hottest country anywhere in the world.’

“When I took office, inflation was the worst in 48 years … which caused prices to be higher than ever before, making life unaffordable for millions and millions of Americans,” the president said.

“Over the past 11 months, we have brought more positive change to Washington than any administration in American history. There has never been anything like it,” he continued.

He said that he successfully negotiated $18 trillion of investments into the country and went on the attack against Democrats.

“Under the Biden administration, car prices rose 22%, and in many states 30% or more,” Trump said. “Gasoline rose 30 to 50%. Hotel rates rose 37%. Airfares rose 31%. Now, under our leadership, they are all coming down and coming down fast.”

The president also cited statistics on his successes concerning border enforcement.

“Drugs brought in by ocean and by sea are now down 94%. We have broken the grip of sinister woke radicals in our schools. … I’ve restored American strength, settled eight wars in 10 months, destroyed the Iran nuclear threat, and ended the war in Gaza, bringing, for the first time in 3,000 years, peace to the Middle East,” he continued.

He looked ahead to the country celebrating the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, the World Cup, and the Olympics.

“One year ago, our country was dead. We were absolutely dead,” he stated. “Our country was ready to fail. Totally fail. Now we’re the hottest country anywhere in the world. And that’s said by every single leader I’ve spoken to over the last five months.”

The president also announced what he called a “warrior dividend” of $1,776 — garnered from his tariffs — to be sent to members of the military in time for Christmas.

“Tonight, after 11 months, our border is secure, inflation is stopped, wages are up, prices are down, our nation is strong, America is respected, and our country is back, stronger than ever before,” he added. “We’re poised for an economic boom the likes of which the world has never seen.”

RELATED: Karoline Leavitt berates CNN’s Kaitlan Collins over inflation and the economy

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) tried to pre-emptively undermine the president’s message on social media.

“He can say whatever he wants on camera, but this is the reality for America: Prices are higher, unemployment is rising, the holidays are more expensive than ever, and his tariffs are taxing people to no end,” he posted.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Donald trump address, Speech to the nation, Economy, Warrior dividend, Politics 

On December 10, border czar Tom Homan announced that investigators were working to determine if Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) had committed immigration fraud by lying on her marriage certificate — which has been a source of rumors for years now.

“She’s on her third marriage now. She really loves getting married here in America, which, like, as a Muslim, I’m pretty sure is frowned upon. The marrying the brother thing, actually I don’t think that’s frowned upon in the Muslim world,” BlazeTV host Sara Gonzales comments on “Sara Gonzales Unfiltered.”

When Omar was later confronted by journalist Nicholas Ballasy, who asked her for any response to the allegations, she said, “I have no response because I don’t know what they’ll be investigating.”

When pressed further, Omar responded that the reason they’re investigating her for immigration fraud is because “they’re sick.”

“She’s like, ‘I don’t even know what they would be investigating.’ Uh, that you married your brother. I think that’s pretty obvious. I think it’s weird that you say, ‘I don’t know what they’d be investigating.’ I think a response from someone who, like, hadn’t just married their freaking brother would be like, ‘Uh, yeah. I mean, this guy was very clearly not my brother. They’re welcome to investigate that,’” Gonzales says.

“That seems to be what a normal person would say in response to, ‘Hey, did you marry your brother?’” she adds.

However, the fraud might go even deeper than just her marriage.

“Omar was caught lying about her birth year, and Minnesota legislative records corroborate that,” Gonzales explains, pulling up Omar’s page in the Minnesota Legislative Reference Library.

“It listed her birth date. It says October 4, 1981, but an updated version of the page lists her birth year as 1982,” she says.

“Could be nothing. But what this also could mean is that it would call into question the legitimacy of her citizenship actually,” she continues, explaining that Omar once told Mehdi Hasan on his podcast “Deconstructed” that she became a citizen before she turned 18, through the process of her father becoming a citizen.

And according to Gonzales, there are three pathways to citizenship Omar could have taken.

“Number one is acquisition. Well, that wouldn’t apply to Ilhan Omar because neither of her parents were U.S. citizens when she was born in Somalia. All right, so cross that one off the list. Number two is the derivation of citizenship, which requires foreign-born children to turn 18 on or after February 27, 2001,” Gonzales explains.

“Well, you can check that one off the list also because it would not apply to Ilhan because she would have been older than 18, even if we used her possibly fake birth year of 1982. So that one also would not apply,” she says.

“Number three, application for citizenship under section 322 of the Immigration and Naturalization Act. Now, pay attention. This is the — ding, ding, ding — this is the one that matters because Ilhan Omar’s family first arrived in the United States in 1995, which means 2000 would be the first year her father would be eligible for citizenship,” she continues.

“So, if Omar was born in 1981, she would have been 18 years old up until October 2000 and 19 years old after October 2000. Meaning she — if that’s her birthday — was an adult, and not eligible for this path of citizenship. If that was her birthday, she was not eligible for the only path of citizenship she would have been eligible for at that time,” she says.

Gonzales points out that by changing her birth year to 1982, she would “then on paper be 17 years old before October 2000.”

“And then it all makes sense,” she says.

Want more from Sara Gonzales?

To enjoy more of Sara’s no-holds-barred takes on news and culture, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

​Camera phone, Free, Sharing, Upload, Video, Video phone, Youtube.com, Sara gonzales, Sara gonzales unfiltered 

LGBTQ activists are outraged after the mayor pro tem of a California desert city called for the local government to stop observing Pride Month.

Palm Desert Mayor Pro Tem Joe Pradetto suggested during a Dec. 16 council meeting that the city should reconsider hanging banners in support of Pride Month. Pradetto said the city should stay out of the private lives of its residents.

‘We must agree to a non-aggression pact. We can’t use the power of the state to punish those who disagree with us.’

He also said that some of the residents expressed concern that the banners showed preference by the city in favor of some residents against others.

The Palm Springs Pride group released a statement condemning the proposal.

“Discrimination is division. The city must unequivocally reject this harmful proposal and reinforce its commitment to being a truly open, diverse, and welcoming home for everyone,” they wrote in a statement.

On Tuesday, the city council voted against the proposal and will keep hanging banners.

In a comment emailed to Blaze News, Pradetto clarified that he had nothing against the LGBTQ community.

“America is divided, and it breaks my heart. Our current strategy of progressive identity politics is failing, and doubling down will only make it worse,” he wrote in part.

“When politics becomes about identity rather than policy, compromise becomes impossible,” Pradetto added. “The temperature rises. I can’t fix that throughout the nation, but I can start in my own city. That is why I proposed policy changes to focus on our similarities, rather than our differences, and remove group-specific banners from City Hall.”

RELATED: LGBTQ activists complain companies are caving to Pride Month backlash: ‘Scared to death’

He went on to say that the policies threatened the values of a pluralistic society.

“In a pluralistic society, you are safe to express who you are and what you believe in the public square. But we must agree to a non-aggression pact. We can’t use the power of the state to punish those who disagree with us,” Pradetto wrote.

“Although my proposal failed, I hope it encourages other officials to look at their policies because our current trajectory will divide us and render state power not as a governing structure but a blunt tool against those who disagree with you,” he concluded.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Palm desert california, Dropping pride banners, Pride month, Lgbtq agenda, Politics 

Republican Rep. Wesley Hunt of Texas is moving legislation on Capitol Hill to ensure taxpayers are actually prioritized over illegal aliens.

Hunt, who is running for U.S. Senate in Texas, introduced the American Dream Protection Act on Thursday to disincentivize states and educational institutions from providing educational benefits to illegal aliens. Hunt’s legislation would require federal financial assistance to be withheld if states are found to provide taxpayer-funded education to illegal aliens.

‘Too many American resources have been used to benefit illegals.’

“For years, the left and a select few Republican senators have pushed for mass amnesty and benefits for illegal aliens,” Hunt told Blaze News. “In 2003, the Dream Act, which was voted favorably out of the Senate Judiciary Committee, created an incentive to provide illegals with in-state tuition rates intended only for legal residents.”

“The American Dream Protection Act of 2025 will eliminate federal and state funding to universities that continue to support illegals.”

RELATED: Ilhan Omar accuses ICE of ‘racially profiling’ her son during traffic stop

Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images

Educational institutions across the country offer in-state tuition and other higher education benefits to illegal aliens, leaving American taxpayers to foot the bill. To counteract these inequities, Hunt’s bill withholds federal funds for schools that charge illegal immigrants lower tuition as well as states that provide them financial aid.

“Too many American resources have been used to benefit illegals while American citizens suffer,” Hunt told Blaze News.

RELATED: Ocasio-Cortez claims ICE is targeting 6-year-olds in her district during crazed speech on immigration

Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Hunt is currently running in the Texas Senate primary against incumbent Sen. John Cornyn and Attorney General Ken Paxton. The Republican primary winner will face off with one of two Democratic candidates, Rep. Jasmine Crockett or state Rep. James Talarico.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Wesley hunt, Donald trump, Texas, John cornyn, Ken paxton, Jasmine crockett, James talarico, Illegal aliens, Federal funding, Migrants, Border crisis, Politics