How's it going America,
A BRAND NEW episode of The Pod Millennial just dropped yesterday! One of my favorite things is doing new monologues every week, and this one is about my teenage quest for the perfect book and wrestling with the "woman writer" issue. Then I talk to author and columnist Kurt Schlichter about the comeback of men and artist Adam Thompson about the Great American Art Competition. You don't want to miss it! Subscribe, rate (5 stars, of course), and listen.
Let's get into it:
Trump's State of the Union speech tackled exactly what it needed to. The speech was long but only because it covered so much ground. He didn't get into his normal weave and kept to the message. He listed accomplishments, talked about further plans, and made some decisive nods to the present. But one moment stood out to me specifically.
Trump awarded two West Virginia National Guardsmen the Purple Heart. Andrew Wolfe and Sarah Beckstrom were attacked and shot by an Afghan illegal immigrant while they served in Washington, DC. The two were on patrol the day after Thanksgiving, November 27, 2025, when they were shot, Beckstrom succumbing to her injuries. Wolfe survived despite being shot in the head.
Trump praised the efforts of the National Guard to bring crime down in the nation's capital. "One of the brave service members who helped achieve this stunning turnaround was 20-year-old West Virginia Army National Guard specialist Sarah Beckstrom. After a four-month deployment, she voluntarily extended her service, and her rank was going to be lifted. She was doing so well. They were so proud of her, but the very next day, she was on patrol near the White House when she was ambushed and shot in the head by a terrorist monster from Afghanistan," Trump said.
"He shouldn't have been in our country, and all because she wore the uniform of our nation. She was shot. He traveled here because he didn't like people wearing our uniform. He was sick and deranged. Shouldn't have been in our country. Sarah Beckstrom died in order to defend our capital, and we are honored to be joined by her wonderful parents, Gary and Eva Lee, your daughter was a true American patriot, and she will be greatly missed. She was a great person. I saw reports on her. They've never seen anything like it.
"So sorry. Thank you very much. Great young lady. I saw reports that were like perfect. She was perfect. Serving alongside Sarah that day was Staff Sergeant Andrew Wolfe, the terrorist shot Andrew in the head, and no one thought he could possibly make it. The two of them, Sarah and Andrew both shot violently in the head. Neither was expected to make it," Trump continued.
He spoke about Wolfe's mother, who believed so fully in his recovery that Trump, her husband, and doctors thought maybe she was delusional or wasn't aware of how injured he truly was. "Melody," he said of her, "she turned out to be right. You're amazing. Actually, I said, Where does this woman come from? She was the most positive person I've ever met, with God's help, Andrew has battled back from the edge of death, and we're talking about the edge of death on his way to a miraculous recovery. He's got a little work to do, but he's doing great. Nice to see he's a good looking guy. Nice to see you. Thanks, Andrew."
And he awarded him the Purple Heart, and Beckstrom, too. I don't know if I felt so strongly for these two because West Virginia is my adopted home, or because I'm a mother, or because my son has friends who are already in the ROTC, but I hold them in my heart, and I hope that the Purple Heart gives them even a sliver of solace.
Libby