President Donald Trump is set to address Congress — and the rest of the country — on Tuesday evening, his first prime-time address since the start of his second term.
A president addressing Congress each year is routine. However, from deep cuts to federal agencies to public feuds with foreign allies, the early days of Trump’s second term have been nothing close to standard. Trump’s upcoming address is expected to recount and expand on the administration’s aggressive efforts to fulfill the president’s ambitious campaign promises to reshape the federal government.
Here’s what you should know before Trump takes center stage tonight.
When and where can I watch the speech?
Trump’s address to Congress will begin Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET. The speech will be broadcast on major television networks and available to stream on certain websites, including POLITICO.
What will Trump talk about?
The theme of Trump’s address will be the “renewal of the American Dream,” and will feature sections on the economy, border security and foreign policy, Fox News reported.
“TOMORROW NIGHT WILL BE BIG. I WILL TELL IT LIKE IT IS!” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post ahead of the address on Monday.
Trump has signaled plans to share updates about efforts to end the war in Ukraine in his speech. The president paused military aid to the country Monday night as a result of a heated exchange with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy last week — furthering fears from Trump’s domestic and international critics about the U.S. more closely aligning with Russia.
He is also expected to discuss his administration’s efforts to bulldoze the federal bureaucracy. The Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency’s cutting spree has been at the center of the administration’s work over the past six weeks.
Why isn’t it called the State of the Union?
The Constitution requires that presidents “shall from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union.” Over the years, the address — referred to as a State of the Union — has become a major broadcast television event for Americans.
But the speech a president typically gives shortly after taking office is not called a “State of the Union” address, getting the more pedestrian title of an address to a joint session of Congress.
There’s no functional difference once the president starts speaking, however.
Who is attending?
Primary attendees of the address include lawmakers from both chambers of Congress, members of the president’s Cabinet, Supreme Court justices, Trump’s family members and a variety of other invited guests.
Republican Reps. Jim Jordan and James Comer — who chair the House Judiciary and Oversight committees — will be bringing two IRS whistleblowers who divulged tax information about Hunter Biden, former President Joe Biden’s son, to the address.
Democratic lawmakers have invited former federal employees impacted by the administration’s efforts to overhaul the government workforce. Other Democrats have announced plans to boycott the address, including Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.).
Who is the designated survivor?
Every year, one Cabinet official is chosen as the “designated survivor,” watching the speech from a secured location. This individual does not attend the speech in person in case a catastrophic event occurs that puts the presidential line of succession at risk.
The White House does not usually announce who the designated survivor is until closer to when the speech starts. In Trump’s 2017 address to Congress, former Secretary of Veterans Affairs David Shulkin held the role.
Who is giving the Democratic response?
Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) is slated to deliver the Democratic rebuttal to Trump’s speech after his address on Tuesday night — a prominent undertaking for a lawmaker considered to be an up-and-comer within the Democratic Party.
“I’m looking forward to speaking directly to the American people next week. The public expects leaders to level with them on what’s actually happening in our country,” she wrote in a post to X last week. “From our economic security to our national security, we’ve got to chart a way forward that improves people’s lives in the country we all love, I look forward to laying that out.”
The first-term senator’s speech is expected to focus on topics like inflation, which is an issue that propelled Trump’s return to the White House and Democrats have been sharply criticized over.
