State of the Union 2020 State of the Union|White House YouTube Screenshot

Arizona Democrats called for more change, while Republicans praised the president and denounced the other side’s actions.

Everyone from Arizona’s congressional lawmakers to political party officials took advantage of the 78 minutes President Donald Trump couldn’t access Twitter Tuesday night to live-tweet their response to the president’s third official State of the Union Address.

Democratic Rep. Raul Grijalva criticized the president’s speech, comparing it to one of Trump’s campaign rallies: 

While Republicans like Reps. Andy Biggs and David Schweikert praised the president’s speech, highlighting what they considered to be some of Trump’s accomplishments: 

Additionally, Republican Rep. Debbie Lesko denounced House Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi for ripping up her copy of Trump’s speech while standing behind him: 

But the Arizona Democratic Party cheered Pelosi on: 

The Arizona Republican Party called out Democratic Rep. Tom O’Halleran for not standing to applaud while Trump was highlighting low unemployment rates for minority groups:

Rep. Paul Gosar mirrored his party’s critiques, calling out Democrats for staying seated:

However, Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, known as a moderate Democrat, stood to applaud Trump’s tax cuts. After the speech, she praised some of the country’s successes but called for more change: 

Republican Sen. Martha McSally took a moment to highlight two fellow Arizonans attending the speech as Trump’s special guests. Trump invited the parents of Kayla Mueller, a Prescott humanitarian aid worker tortured and killed by ISIS in 2015.

U.S. Special Forces killed Mueller’s captor, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, last fall. 

Other guests with Arizona ties included Iain Lanphier, an eighth-grader from Scottsdale. He attended the speech with his great-grandfather, Charles McGee, one of the last surviving airmen who served in World War II.

Lanphier was recognized for his dream of joining the U.S. Air Force and traveling to space. 

Jessica Swarner

Jessica Swarner is an associate editor for The Copper Courier. She is an ASU alumna and previously worked at KTAR News 92.3 FM in Phoenix.

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