President Trump’s remarks in his farewell address to the nation
|My fellow Americans: Four years ago, we began a massive national endeavor to rebuild our nation, revitalize its spirit, and reestablish the government’s loyalty to its constituents. In other words, we set out on a quest to restore America’s greatness for all citizens.
I stand in front of you as I complete my time as the 45th President of the United States, genuinely proud of what we have accomplished. We accomplished a great deal more than we had anticipated.
We welcome a new administration this week and hope it will keep America secure and wealthy. We send our best wishes and hope they have luck, which is a crucial word.
I’d want to start by expressing my gratitude to a select group of incredible folks that made our astonishing journey possible.
Let me first take this opportunity to thank our incredible First Lady, Melania, from the bottom of my heart for her love and support. Let me also express my sincere gratitude to Barron, Don, Eric, Tiffany, Lara, my daughter Ivanka, and my son-in-law Jared. You bring joy and light into my world.
I also thank Vice President Mike Pence, his lovely wife Karen, and the Pence clan.
I would also like to extend my gratitude to my chief of staff, Mark Meadows, the hardworking White House staff and the Cabinet members, and all the fantastic individuals in our administration who gave their best to fight for America.
I also want to express my gratitude to the US Secret Service, a remarkable set of people. My family and I will always owe you money. Along with everyone in the White House Military Office, the crews of Marine One and Air Force One, every member of the Armed Forces, and state and local law enforcement from throughout the nation, I would like to express my sincere gratitude.
I want to express my gratitude to Americans in particular. It has been an honor to lead your country as your President. I’m grateful for this unique opportunity. And that’s precisely what it is: a tremendous honor and privilege.
While Americans may always disagree on some issues, we must never lose sight of the fact that we are a country of extraordinary, kind, loyal, and peace-loving folks who want to see our nation grow, prosper, and be very, very successful and excellent. Our country is charming.
The attack on our Capitol terrified all Americans. Political violence is a direct assault on the values that define us as Americans. It is never acceptable.
We must unite around our shared values, get past the partisanship, and shape our shared future.
I arrived in Washington four years ago as the first genuine outsider to win the presidency. Instead of spending my career as a politician, I worked as a function Object() { [native code] }, taking in the expansive skylines and the seemingly endless possibilities. Because I knew that America was poised to scale new, towering heights, I decided to run for President. As long as we prioritize America, our country has limitless possibilities.
Therefore, I left my old life behind and entered a highly challenging field, but one that nonetheless had a lot of potentials if done well. I wanted to give back to America since it had given me so much.
We created the most significant political movement in our nation’s history with the help of millions of devoted Americans all around the country. We also made the largest economy in human history. We all wanted to restore America’s greatness. Therefore it was about putting “America First.” We reinstated the idea that a country exists to serve its people. Our program was focused on the well-being of the country as a whole, not on the right or left, or on Republicans or Democrats.
We were able to accomplish more than anyone could have imagined with the help and prayers of the American people. Nobody anticipated that we would even get close.
The most extensive tax cuts and reforms ever enacted in the United States were passed. Our administration cut more job-killing regulations than any other government in history. We renegotiated the unfair South Korea trade agreement, corrected our failed trade agreements, withdrew from the terrible Trans-Pacific Partnership, and replaced NAFTA with the ground-breaking USMCA, which includes Mexico and Canada, and has been a tremendous success.
Additionally, and this is crucial, we signed a tremendous new deal with China and slapped historic and gigantic tariffs on that country. But before the ink dried, COVID-19 struck us and the rest of the world. Although our commercial relationship was fast shifting and enormous amounts of money flooded the United States, the virus compelled us to change course.
Despite the economic hardships experienced by the entire world, America outpaced other nations thanks to our phenomenal economy and the economy we created. It wouldn’t have happened this way if the footings and foundations hadn’t been there. Without it, we wouldn’t have some of our most good numbers.
We also used our energy resources, surpassing all other countries in oil and natural gas production. We created the largest economy in human history thanks to these policies. We rekindled job growth in America and cut unemployment rates for everyone, including people of color, Hispanics, Asians, and women.
In only a few short years, millions of people were lifted out of poverty as incomes soared, wages soared, and the American Dream was restored. It was miraculous. With 148 stock market highs in this brief time, the stock market broke record after record, boosting industrious Americans’ retirement and pension funds around the country. 401(k)s are now at a level never previously reached. Both before and after the pandemic, we’ve never seen numbers quite like these.