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Voters share their thoughts on the state of the union ahead of Trump's address

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

Before today's speech, we called a few voters. Some cast their ballot for Trump. Some did not. We asked two Trump voters how they feel about the state of the union.

LEO SIGUENZA: Not good.

DEANNA KILLEN: Honestly, I didn't think we could get (ph) much worse than what it's been. But yeah, I don't feel we're improving at all. I feel like we're going in the opposite direction.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Leo Siguenza (ph) is an independent in Nevada, and Deanna Killen (ph) is a Republican in Texas. Two Democrats we heard from seem to agree with them.

KAREN BORMAN: I think we're unstable. That's how I feel - unstable. You know, what's up? What's down? What's right? What's left?

RENA SCHULTE: Pretty bad. Definitely the worst it's ever been in my lifetime.

FADEL: That's Karen Borman (ph) in New York and Rena Schulte (ph) in Iowa. We also asked them about the economy.

BORMAN: The cost of living is still up. And the way Trump is making a mess out of this whole economy, I don't even know what's going on.

SCHULTE: There's more people who are unhoused and who are filing for assistance that just isn't there anymore due to all the budgetary cuts and problems with federal funding and everything that's been caused by this administration.

INSKEEP: Now, the latest NPR/PBS News/Marist poll finds that most Republicans feel the country is heading in the right direction, unlike independents or Democrats. But Trump voters Siguenza and Killen worry about the economy.

SIGUENZA: Things are wildly unaffordable and getting more and more. The quality of American-made products is going down.

KILLEN: I would say I am extremely worried where the U.S. dollar is going as far as how it'll affect my business.

FADEL: Another cornerstone policy of the Trump administration - immigration. So we asked these four voters about surges in ICE enforcement.

SIGUENZA: Immigration, that's a mixed bag.

KILLEN: I mean, obviously, bad people come into the country. I mean, it happens everywhere. But what we're doing right now is not stopping those criminals at all. Like, it's laughable. Basically, we're just terrorizing innocent people, honestly, at this point.

BORMAN: I'm glad the southern border is closed, but I don't agree with the deportation policy of his.

SCHULTE: I think it's really immoral, the way that it's being handled.

FADEL: That was independent voter Leo Siguenza, Republican Deanna Killen and Democrats Karen Borman and Rena Schulte. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

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