'America is back', declares Trump as Dems protest

Donald Trump declared "America is back" on Tuesday in his first address to Congress since returning to power, touting his radical policies in the face of raucous Democratic hostility while proclaiming a breakthrough on Ukraine.

- Agencies

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In the longest presidential speech to lawmakers on record, the Republican repeatedly hailed billionaire advisor Elon Musk's controversial assault on the federal bureaucracy and said his administration was "just getting started".

"The American Dream is unstoppable," said Trump in a speech lasting over one hour and 40 minutes, which beat Bill Clinton's record for his State of the Union speech in 2000.

Almost every line got loud applause from Republican Party members, including on two occasions when Trump singled out SpaceX and Tesla tycoon Musk, who stood up to salute Congress.

But protests also began within minutes.