Here's what we know so far about Trump's first State of the Union address
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
President Trump's first State of the Union will focus on "building a safe, strong, and proud America" with an emphasis on his trillion-dollar infrastructure plan, the ongoing debate over immigration, the economy, trade, and national security, New York reports.
The big question of the night is if Trump will offer lawmakers a specific blueprint for how he wants to proceed on thorny topics like the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, after signaling last week he is open to a pathway to citizenship for people brought illegally to the U.S as children. White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told Today on Tuesday: "I think you're going to see a lot of the president's heart in this speech."
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) hinted in an op-ed the tone Trump is likely to take on the economy: "When President Trump delivers his State of the Union address, he will have outstanding news to share," McConnell wrote. "After a decade of sluggish growth and stagnant paychecks, our country is back on the right track." In a dueling op-ed, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) advised Trump to "urge Congress to deliver a substantial investment in our nation's infrastructure." Rep. Joe Kennedy III (D-Mass.) will offer the official rebuttal to the speech.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A reliable signal of the president's State of the Union agenda is who joins the first lady in her box. Melania Trump will have 15 guests, including four parents of two teenage girls who were murdered by members of the MS-13 gang in New York in 2016, CNN reports. A police officer who adopted a baby from parents suffering from opioid addiction and a beneficiary of the Republican tax cuts will also be in attendance as Melania Trump's guests.
The speech will air on every major network as well as YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter beginning at 9 p.m. ET.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
-
The Olympic timekeepers keeping the Games on trackUnder the Radar Swiss watchmaking giant Omega has been at the finish line of every Olympic Games for nearly 100 years
-
Will increasing tensions with Iran boil over into war?Today’s Big Question President Donald Trump has recently been threatening the country
-
Corruption: The spy sheikh and the presidentFeature Trump is at the center of another scandal
-
Judge orders Washington slavery exhibit restoredSpeed Read The Trump administration took down displays about slavery at the President’s House Site in Philadelphia
-
Hyatt chair joins growing list of Epstein files losersSpeed Read Thomas Pritzker stepped down as executive chair of the Hyatt Hotels Corporation over his ties with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell
-
Judge blocks Hegseth from punishing Kelly over videoSpeed Read Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth pushed for the senator to be demoted over a video in which he reminds military officials they should refuse illegal orders
-
Trump’s EPA kills legal basis for federal climate policySpeed Read The government’s authority to regulate several planet-warming pollutants has been repealed
-
House votes to end Trump’s Canada tariffsSpeed Read Six Republicans joined with Democrats to repeal the president’s tariffs
-
Bondi, Democrats clash over Epstein in hearingSpeed Read Attorney General Pam Bondi ignored survivors of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and demanded that Democrats apologize to Trump
-
El Paso airspace closure tied to FAA-Pentagon standoffSpeed Read The closure in the Texas border city stemmed from disagreements between the Federal Aviation Administration and Pentagon officials over drone-related tests
-
Judge blocks Trump suit for Michigan voter rollsSpeed Read A Trump-appointed federal judge rejected the administration’s demand for voters’ personal data
