In record State of the Union, Trump spars with Dems, touts economy and immigration

TRUMP CLAIM: "In the past nine months, zero illegal aliens have been admitted to the United States."

FACT CHECK: False, but crossings are down drastically

After using executive authority to enforce a series of restrictive policy measures at the southern border, the Trump administration has severely decreased the number of people who crossed the border illegally, down from the record highs of the Biden administration.

According to the data collected by Customs and Border Protection, in 2024, the last full year of Biden’s presidency, there were over 1.5 million encounters with migrants attempting to illegally cross the border. In 2025, the first full year of Trump’s second term in office, that number dropped to just under 28,000.

Those low trends continue in 2026, but have never been at “zero” as the president has often suggested. The numbers suggest migrants are still attempting to cross the border, and it would be impossible to know if any had gone through unnoticed.

-ABC News' Luke Barr and Justin Fishel

While touting his accomplishments, Trump said, "We ended DEI in America" -- referring to diversity, equity and inclusion practices, a frequent target of his administration.

Trump said they got a record number of "job-killing regulations" and decreased the number of people on food stamps by 2.4 million.

President Trump introduced the men's hockey team at the State of the Union, with athletes entering the House chamber wearing their gold medals.

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Men's Olympic hockey team gets shout out from Trump at SOTU addressPresident Trump introduced the men's hockey team at the State of the Union, with athletes entering the House chamber wearing their gold medals.

ABCNews.com

The team flew to Washington earlier Tuesday on a government plane and spent the day at the White House.

Trump specifically shouted out goalie Connor Hellebuyck for his performance, and said he will be awarding him the Presidential Medal of Freedom -- the nation's highest civilian honor.

President Trump, early on in his speech, sought to highlight what his administration sees as economic wins: lower gas prices and a booming stock market.

"The roaring economy is roaring like never before," Trump said.

But most Americans disapprove of how he's handling the economy (57%) and inflation (65%), according to a recent ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos poll.