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Trump attacks Mueller probe in State of the Union address: 'Ridiculous, partisan investigations'

'We must be united at home to defeat our adversaries abroad'

Adam Withnall
Wednesday 06 February 2019 03:32 GMT
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State of the Union: Trump decries 'ridiculous partisan investigations'

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Donald Trump has used his State of the Union address to hit out at "ridiculous, partisan" investigations into his presidency, claiming that they threaten to derail the US economy.

The president did not name specific probes, but the criminal enquiries that are ongoing include Special Counsel Robert Mueller's efforts to establish whether the Trump campaign colluded with Russia, and the New York prosecutor's search for evidence of wrongdoing by the Trump inaugural committee.

Mr Trump hailed jobs figures from last week that showed another 304,000 added.

"An economic miracle is taking place in the United States, and the only thing that can stop it are foolish wars, politics and ridiculous, partisan investigations," he said.

"If there is going to be peace and legislation there can not be war and investigation, it just doesn't work that way.

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"We must be united at home to defeat our adversaries abroad."

Mr Trump also linked the issue to what he called the Senate's refusal to confirm his appointees.

He told the house: "This new era of cooperation can start with finally confirming the more than 300 highly qualified nominees who are still stuck in the senate, in some cases years and years waiting. Not right.

"The senate has failed to act on these nominations, which is unfair on the nominees and very unfair to our country."

It was the second call for cooperation in Mr Trump's speech, coming after the historic government shutdown and with another potentially looming. Earlier, he received a partial standing ovation after he said: "We must embrace the boundless potential of cooperation, compromise and the common good."

A number of Democrats dressed in white in a message of feminist solidarity, among them Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, declined to join the standing ovation.

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