STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. – If you want to know the true state of our American union, you didn’t have to listen to all of President Donald Trump’s speech on Tuesday night.

All you had to do was tune in for the opening and closing minutes. Two bookended moments told you all you needed to know about U.S. politics.

Arriving at the podium to give his address, Trump, as is tradition, gave copies of the speech to Vice President Mike Pence and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. When Pelosi reached out to shake Trump’s hand, Trump turned his back.

Could you blame Trump? Pelosi was a top leader of the House’s impeachment of the president. The two haven’t spoken since a stormy meeting in October.

But Pelosi almost immediately pushed the snub right back across the table at Trump.

In introducing Trump to lawmakers, Pelosi declined to say, as is also tradition, that it was her “high honor and distinct privilege” to introduce the president. She said only, “Members of Congress, the president of the United States.”

Can’t blame Pelosi either. She wants Trump out of office. The president had just dissed her in front of the country. At least she was able to get the words “president of the United States” out of her mouth without choking.

This is where we’re at: Open antagonism for all Americans to see between two of the most powerful people in the country at one of the nation’s marquee political events.

It’s actually pretty tame by the House’s historical standards. In the early days of the Republic, the House could be a pretty rowdy place. Members attacked each other with canes, knives and fists. Firearms were brandished. There were massive brawls.

But Trump wasn’t done turning up the flame under Democrats, many of whom sat stone-faced as Trump enumerated the economic and national security gains of his presidency. Some Dems were seen reading pocket copies of the U.S. Constitution. Boning up on the 25th Amendment, perhaps?

Trump slammed the economic record of President Barack Obama. He more than once held up Pelosi’s home state of California as an example of everything that’s wrong with the country, including its status as a sanctuary state. He railed against socialism, illegal aliens and radical Islamic terrorism. He praised ICE agents.

The language was purposely inflammatory, and proudly “politically incorrect.” And that was the point. As was giving cancer-stricken conservative radio talker Rush Limbaugh the Presidential Medal of Freedom in the middle of the speech. A good way to make sure that the whole country saw it happen, and to make sure that the mainstream media had to cover it. That’s Trump the TV showman.

And Trump didn’t stop, reveling in the number of federal judges he has appointed, including two to the Supreme Court; speaking up for religious freedom and against abortion, and saying that he would continue be a guardian for Second Amendment gun rights.

Republicans were worried that Trump would gloat about how impeachment has turned out for the Dems. He never alluded to it once. He didn’t have to.

Pelosi looked apoplectic throughout the night. She spent a lot of time thumbing through papers on her desk. You expected her to jump out of her seat and shout, “Liar!” at some points. Or at least to take her phone out and start scrolling.

But her final statement came when Trump finished his speech. Pelosi could be seen on the podium, tearing a copy of the address to shreds.

Political statement or impotent rage? Depends on which side of the aisle you’re on.

Either way, it was a perfect ending to a night of open division and rancor in America 2020. You wonder what the actual presidential campaign will bring.