ICYMI: Daines Lauds Affordability, Strength on the World Stage Following Trump’s State of the Union Address

• February 25, 2026

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Steve Daines today joined CNBC, Fox News, Bloomberg TV, and Fox Business to react to President Trump's State of the Union address as well as the latest updates in Iran. Read highlights below.

Daines on CNBC's Squawk Box

I thought for a moment, what if Kamala Harris would have won the 2024 election? What if she was giving that speech last night? Where would we be at? Millions of illegals continuing to come across our southern border. As the president said, he's sealed the southern border. Fentanyl flows are down 56 percent over the course of the last year because of the work this administration has done to keep our communities safe. Think about taxes. We'd be talking right now about a 30 percent tax increase for most businesses across the United States because the Democrats would have let the Trump tax cuts expire. Instead, we made them permanent. Think about capital investment, R&D investment, interest costs. Those are all now 100 percent expensed as a result of what we've done, working with President Trump. That would be jet fuel for the economy as we move forward.

Watch the full interview on CNBC HERE.

Daines on Fox News

The Iranians understand force, they understand strength. You go back to 1979, and we had the overthrow there, the Ayatollah overthrew the Shah. You had American hostages there in Tehran. Jimmy Carter couldn't solve that problem. Who solved that problem? Ronald Reagan. Why? Because they feared the strength of America. What President Trump is doing is exactly right. You put all options on the table. But this regime is a regime that says "Death to America," says, "we are the big Satan and Israel, the little Satan."

I'm grateful for President Trump's moral clarity in this difficult time, knowing that this is a Berlin Wall moment, perhaps, for the Middle East. This regime needs to go. It'll be the Iranian people that do that. But you think about what this would do to reset the Middle East, as the president said last night, the leading sponsor of terror in the world, John, this is a moment. And I'm sure President Trump is going to do what's right for our country and for the people of this nation.

Watch the full interview on Fox News HERE.

Daines on Bloomberg TV

Number one, President Trump has unleashed certainly more Made-In-America energy. We've seen gas prices now the lowest in five years. That's an important win for the American people, something you're reminded of usually weekly when you're gassing up your vehicle. Number two, when you address affordability, part of the affordability equation is getting more money in the pockets of the American people and we've seen that with the Working Family Tax Cut bill is just now starting to go into effect. These are new tax laws that started in 2026. The average U.S. taxpayer is going to see about a $3,700 a year benefit from lower taxes. Of course, that's Social Security and no tax for 90 percent of seniors and Social Security will be affected by that. There's also the no tax on tips, the no tax on overtime. These are just some of the benefits that have yet to be realized by the American people. They're going to see more of that as we get close to the election. So affordability is not just reducing prices, but also providing more dollars in the paychecks of the American people to close that gap.

Watch the full interview on Bloomberg TV HERE.

Daines on Fox Business' Varney & Co.

The regime, the current regime, is calling America the big Satan, and Israel the little Satan. They chant, "death to America." There's only one thing this current regime respects and understands, and that is force. It is strength. That's why you're seeing the president upping the military presence right now around Iran, given the maximum negotiating leverage. But this could be an unprecedented shift in the Middle East if there were regime change. The Iranian people will drive that, but this could be a Berlin Wall moment in the Middle East. Because you and I both remember the days when Iran was a friend of the United States. We could work with them.

Watch the full interview on Fox Business HERE.

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