Headline Roundup • February 25th, 2026
Fact Checking President Trump's 2026 State of the Union Address
Facts And Fact Checking,State Of The Union,Politics,Donald Trump,Trump Administration,Congress,Washington DC
Summary from the AllSides News Team
President Trump gave the longest-ever State of the Union Address on Tuesday night, prompting fact checking coverage, primarily from outlets on the left.
From the Left: The New York Times (Lean Left bias) fact checked 29 of the president's statements and concluded nine were "false," eight were "exaggerated," five were "misleading," five "need[ed] context," and two "lack[ed] evidence." The Times included one statement it found to be "mostly true" in its coverage, though it came from Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger, who gave the Democratic rebuttal. Spanberger claimed Trump's tariffs have cost each American family $1,700. The Times also added some humor to its reporting, describing Trump's claim that Team USA goaltender Connor Hellebuyck's gold medal goaltending performance was the best he's ever seen. The Times called it "exaggerated" and wrote, "OK, this is definitely a pedantic fact check."
From the Center: BBC News (Center) didn't offer explicit labels for each statement it fact checked, but of the seven it fact checked, it found two to be more or less correct. BBC said Trump's claim that more Americans are employed than ever was correct, but needed the context that the American population is bigger too. Of Trump's claim that "zero illegal aliens have been admitted" to the US, BBC said if Trump was referring to migrants released from custody, then the statement is correct. During the address, Trump, as he has claimed before, said he "ended eight wars." BBC noted the White House lists seven "wars," and that although Trump can claim credit for the Israel-Hamas ceasefire, his claim was "not correct." It added, "A number of these 'wars' had lasted just days, although were the result of long-standing tensions."
From the Right: AllSides only found fact checking on the right from Breitbart (Right), which published a pair of individual fact checks. Similar to BBC, Breitbart found Trump's claim that his administration has allowed "zero illegal aliens" in the past nine months to be "mostly true." Breitbart also said Trump's claim that core inflation dropped to 1.7% in the last quarter of 2025 was "true." Conversely, BBC opted to include the inflation rate for the last 12 months in its coverage, which it said was 2.4%.
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Featured Coverage of this Story
Kenny Holston/The New York Times
President Trump claimed in his State of the Union address on Tuesday night to have ushered in a "turnaround for the ages" by citing a list of familiar falsehoods and inaccurate claims.
In nearly two hours of remarks, Mr. Trump sought to persuade voters unhappy with his handling of affordability and immigration enforcement that the economy was "roaring" and that deportations were focused on criminal migrants. And he again sowed doubt in the upcoming midterm elections by repeating falsehoods about "rampant cheating."
President Donald Trump delivered his longest speech to Congress - lasting one hour 47 minutes - and told US lawmakers that the "country is winning again" as he touted his administration's achievements.
The US economy and affordability were key themes in the address - which was the longest in decades. Trump also made claims about illegal immigration as well as ending a series of wars around the world.
BBC Verify has looked into them.
CLAIM: During President Donald Trump's first State of the Union (SOTU) address in his second term, the president said he is overseeing the "most secure border in American history."
VERDICT: Mostly true. Trump has overseen the lowest levels of illegal immigration to the United States in more than half a century.
"After four years in which millions and millions of illegal aliens poured across our borders, totally unvetted and unchecked, we now have the strongest and most secure border in American history — by far," Trump said at the address.
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