Last night’s televised address was a master class in hypocrisy, lies, and projection—the familiar grifter’s playbook delivered with renewed audacity. Donald Trump spoke as though truth were a prop to be bent at will, accusing others of corruption while embodying it, decrying dishonesty while trafficking in it. The address leaned heavily on grievance and self-pity, substituting bravado for evidence and spectacle for substance. It was not a speech meant to inform or unite; it was a performance designed to distract from a record that cannot withstand scrutiny.

Since taking office, nearly everything Trump has touched has left America weaker. The economy, endlessly touted with superlatives, has been undermined by erratic policy, reckless trade wars, and the normalization of cronyism that favors insiders over workers and consumers. National security has fared no better: alliances were treated as burdens, adversaries as props, and intelligence professionals as enemies to be sidelined. The result has been diminished credibility abroad and increased uncertainty at home—an America less trusted by partners and more easily exploited by rivals.

Perhaps most damaging has been the assault on science and education—the long-term engines of national strength. Expertise was mocked, research politicized, and facts dismissed when inconvenient. From public health to climate science to the classroom, evidence gave way to ideology and impulse. That erosion matters: nations that sneer at knowledge do not lead; they fall behind. Trump’s address asked Americans to accept his version of reality and ignore the consequences playing out in plain sight. The truth is simpler and harsher: a presidency built on deception has delivered division and decline, leaving the country poorer in trust, weaker in standing, and diminished in promise.