WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is set to hold his first joint congressional speech on Tuesday night where he’ll address lawmakers and outline plans for the remainder of his term as well as tout his accomplishments so far.
The highly anticipated speech will be the first time Trump has addressed Congress since being reelected to his second term. While Republicans are sure to offer thunderous applause with multiple standing ovations, Democrats are unlikely to praise any of the president’s talking points.
In years past, the minority party has typically engaged in some sort of opposition by bringing guests with a political message or boycotting the event altogether. In some cases, lawmakers have even gone so far as to boo or jeer at the president during the speech, interrupting his remarks.
The speech comes after a tumultuous start for Trump’s term as the president has made dramatic changes to the federal government by drastically cutting spending and laying off thousands of federal employees.
The address also comes on the heels of a contentious meeting between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy last week that led to mixed reactions from lawmakers. Some praised the exchange as a flex of U.S. muscles while others cautioned it was dangerous for foreign relations.
Here’s what to expect in what could turn out to be an unpredictable event, which is scheduled to begin at 9 p.m. EST on Tuesday.
The State of the Union … or, not really
The State of the Union address is presented every year by the sitting president to share details about the current atmosphere of the nation and how the administration is working to make things better for the American people.
This year, however, semantics will bar the event from being called the State of the Union.
The address is meant to feature the president who presided over the country for the previous year — something Trump has not done because he was only inaugurated in January. Due to that technicality, the first address in a president’s term is not called the State of the Union, despite bearing a striking resemblance.
Republicans eager for first speech in GOP trifecta
Not only is it Trump’s first joint congressional address since his last term, it’s also the first speech since 2019 that Republicans have held control of the White House and both chambers of Congress — raising the excitement level for GOP lawmakers as they prepare for the event.
“Preparations are underway to welcome (Trump) for his joint address to Congress tomorrow night,” House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said in a post on X alongside a photo of the House chamber. “It’s going to be BIG!”
“We are ready for you, Mr. President!” House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., said in his own post.
Republicans have so far enjoyed the advantages of holding a trifecta in the federal government, which largely gives them the ability to pass most legislation on their agenda. Trump has also signed a slew of executive orders undoing actions from the Biden administration, with Republicans eager to hear more about the president’s vision during his speech on Tuesday.
“President Trump will share his vision during a Joint Address to Congress on how he will continue the successes we have already seen during his second term in office,” Rep. John Joyce, R-Penn., said in a statement. “The Golden Age of America will continue to open doors for all Americans.”
What will Trump talk about, and for how long?
It’s not yet clear what topics Trump will touch on during his televised address, but it’s likely the speech could last more than an hour.
Presidential speeches have not always been so long, but Trump holds the longest average State of the Union length of the last 11 presidents. Trump’s average length from his first term was roughly an hour and 20 minutes, followed closely by Bill Clinton with an average length of an hour and 14 minutes.
The longest State of the Union speech Trump gave was in 2019, which lasted an hour and 22 minutes.
Trump is likely to tout the executive actions he has taken so far, particularly the tariffs planned to hit Canada and Mexico as early as Tuesday. Those tariffs were initially expected to be implemented in February but were temporarily delayed due to last-minute agreements with both countries to strengthen security measures at the border to counter illegal immigration and the flow of fentanyl and other illegal drugs.
However, Trump announced last week those tariffs would be implemented during the first week of March, arguing the U.S.’s neighbors are not doing enough to hold up their end of the bargain.
Trump may also talk about his administration’s efforts to end the war in Ukraine, especially after a meeting with Zelenskyy in the Oval Office on Friday ended in a shouting match between the two world leaders and an abrupt exit by the Ukrainian president before the pair could sign a planned minerals deal.
The president could speak about his administration’s efforts to cut down on waste and fraud in the federal government through the newly established Department of Government Efficiency, led by multi-billionaire Elon Musk. DOGE’s actions have caused concern among some U.S. voters, leading a handful of Republicans to call for increased compassion as Musk looks for spending cuts.
How will Democrats respond?
While Democrats have organized large-scale protests for previous speeches — such as women wearing all white to the last several presidential addresses to symbolize the Me Too movement or even boycotts of the event altogether — some lawmakers are planning their own individual messaging tactics.
For example, some Democrats are planning to bring ex-federal government employees to the address as their guests in protest of the layoffs being carried out by DOGE.
House Minority Whip Katherine Clark, the second-highest ranking Democrat in the House, will bring Sarah Wroblewski, a meteorologist whose son is battling a rare form of cancer.
Wroblewski has been outspoken about proposed spending cuts to the National Institutes of Health, raising concerns that it would block research projects to cure cancer.
“I can’t even imagine how devastating a diagnosis for one of my children would be of having a stage four rare cancer,” Clark said in a video. “The second-most devastating thing would be that my federal government has decided to end childhood cancer research and take that away, take the hope from my family.”
Rep. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., will bring Kyle Rahn, who previously worked with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency within the Department of Homeland Security. Rahn, a three-time deployed veteran, was laid off because he held probationary status due to his recent promotion to the CISA role within the last year.
In addition to bringing Rahn, Gallego said he is hoping to hear commitments from Trump in his speech to protect veterans.
“I’ll tell you right now: I also believe that there does need to be some cleanup of the federal budget, but I think that currently we’re looking for those numbers in the wrong places,” Gallego told the Deseret News in an interview. “I would hope that our presence reminds him of the commitment to the American people that he made. Yeah, I agree, you were elected to find some efficiencies, but you know, let’s do that in an actual planned-out method.”
Rep. Ritchie Torres, D-N.Y., is also planning to bring a former government employee affected by the layoffs. The New York Democrat is set to attend with Nancy Bolan, a Bronx-based USAID employee who was fired by DOGE earlier this year.
“A registered nurse practitioner and certified midwife, Nancy has devoted her career to helping the most vulnerable women and children in some of the most war-ravaged places on earth,” Torres said in a post on X. “She spent six years at USAID after a long career in health care and public health both in the United States and around the globe. All she wants to do is to return to her job — saving lives.”
Although Democrats are not planning an all-out boycott, some in the minority remain undecided on whether they’ll attend the speech.