Trump Congress speech LIVE updates: US President praises Elon Musk’s DOGE, defends Canada, China tariffs; Al Green remove from chamber

My trade wars have only just begun.

That was Donald Trump’s message, writes national security correspondent Matthew Knott, as the US president called out India and South Korea as two countries he accused of applying unfair tariffs on American goods.

Following up from his tariffs on Mexican, Canadian and Chinese goods, Trump said he would push ahead with plans to introduce reciprocal tariffs on a raft of countries beginning on April 2.

That date is likely to fall within the window of an Australian election campaign. Trump has not named Australia but has stressed the importance of his looming tariffs on steel and aluminium.

The Albanese government has been growing increasingly pessimistic about the prospect of an exemption to the tariffs and they won’t feel more optimistic after this speech.

Steel and aluminium tariffs are crucial to the “soul of the country”, Trump said. “We have been ripped off for decades by nearly every country on earth. Whatever they tariff us, we will tariff them. Whatever they tax us, we will tax them.”