President Donald Trump is ready to handle a joint session of Congress on Tuesday — his first speech to Congress of his second time period.
His speech will probably be his fifth public handle earlier than a joint session of Congress, and comes at a time when Republicans maintain a trifecta with a GOP president and majorities in each the Home and the Senate.
Here is what it is advisable know in regards to the speech and how you can watch.
President Donald Trump delivers a State of the Union handle to a joint session of Congress on the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., Feb. 4, 2020.
Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg by way of Getty Photographs
When is it?
Trump will handle a joint session of Congress on the Capitol on Tuesday, March 4, at 9 p.m. ET (8 p.m. CT; 6 p.m. PT).
Home Speaker Mike Johnson invited Trump to ship the joint handle to Congress final month in order that Trump may share his “America First imaginative and prescient for our legislative future,” the speaker wrote in his invitation.
Speaker of the Home Mike Johnson delivers remarks after the Home handed the Republican’s price range decision on the spending invoice on February 25, 2025 on the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC.
Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Photographs
How can I watch and stream?
ABC Information could have particular protection of Trump’s speech from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. ET on ABC and ABC Information Stay, which streams on Disney+, Hulu and different digital platforms as effectively.
“World Information Tonight” anchor and managing editor David Muir will lead the protection and be joined by ABC Information Stay “Prime” anchor and “World Information Tonight” Sunday anchor Linsey Davis, chief Washington correspondent and “This Week” co-anchor Jonathan Karl, chief world affairs correspondent and “This Week” co-anchor Martha Raddatz, chief White Home correspondent Mary Bruce, chief justice correspondent Pierre Thomas, chief enterprise, economics and expertise correspondent Rebecca Jarvis, senior political correspondent Rachel Scott, nationwide correspondent Mireya Villarreal and multiplatform reporter Jay O’Brien.
ABC Information Digital could have wall-to-wall protection, together with a reside weblog with up-to-the-minute commentary on the main themes of the handle and response from ABC Information’ group of consultants, notable moments and key takeaways from the night, and a reality verify. 538 could have data-driven previews and reactions to the handle, too.
What’s an handle to the joint session of Congress?
Since this speech will probably be Trump’s first throughout his second time period, it isn’t known as a “State of the Union” — though each the handle to the joint session and State of the Union are successfully the identical.
The handle is known as the State of the Union for the years that do not embrace the president’s inauguration.
The speech is a presidential obligation mandated within the Structure, which requires the president “now and again to offer to the Congress Info of the State of the Union.”
What’s Trump anticipated to say?
Trump, like different presidents, will take the chance to debate his agenda.
Since taking workplace, Trump has been aggressive in pushing his priorities, which embrace curbing what he sees as wasteful authorities spending via federal job cuts.
He’ll probably talk about these efforts in addition to his objectives with immigration, international coverage and the economic system.
Who will probably be there?
Trump’s speech will carry all branches of presidency collectively as he’s joined by members of Congress and Supreme Court docket justices.
The speaker of the Home and the vice chairman sit behind the president whereas he speaks. This speech will mark the primary time Vice President JD Vance will probably be seated behind Trump for the handle. Throughout his earlier administration, former Vice President Mike Pence was seated behind him.
Throughout his final State of the Union handle in 2020, then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi memorably ripped up a replica of Trump’s speech simply as he completed.
Home Speaker Nancy Pelosi rips up papers after President Donald Trump delivers a State of the Union handle to a joint session of Congress on the Capitol in Washington, D.C., Feb. 4, 2020.
Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg by way of Getty Photographs
Invited company additionally attend the occasion. The White Home and members of Congress usually invite company with particular backgrounds and tales which might be vital to them each personally and politically — folks they need to thank, to honor and even to spotlight a selected problem.
The White Home has not but launched its record of invited company.
Who’s talking for the Democratic Occasion?
Every year, the opposing occasion has a televised response to the president’s message. This 12 months, Michigan Sen. Elissa Slotkin will ship the Democratic response following Trump’s handle to Congress.
“The general public expects leaders to stage with them on what’s truly occurring in our nation. From our financial safety to our nationwide safety, we have got to chart a approach ahead that really improves folks’s lives within the nation all of us love, and I am trying ahead to laying that out,” Slotkin, a freshman senator, stated in an announcement.
Slotkin is a political survivor who gained her Senate seat in November by lower than 20,000 votes, although Trump carried the state on the presidential stage.
The previous CIA analyst and Pentagon official additionally served two phrases within the Home, after flipping a suburban Detroit seat in 2018. Trump gained her district by 4 factors in 2016 and misplaced it by .5 factors in 2020.
Democratic Rep. Adriano Espaillat, the chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, will ship the Spanish language response to Trump. He is the primary Dominican American — and previously undocumented immigrant — to serve in Congress.
ABC Information’ Benjamin Siegel contributed to this report.
