Washington — Tonight, President Trump will speak to a joint session of Congress, his first appearance before both houses since taking office almost six weeks ago.
Early in their term, presidents usually address a joint session of Congress to lay forth their goals. Technically, the first speech given to lawmakers is an Address to a Joint Session of Congress rather than a State of the Union.
In January, House Speaker Mike Johnson extended the traditional invitation to Mr. Trump to speak to Congress and “share his America First vision for our future.” The speaker stated in a letter to the president that the Trump administration and the Republican-controlled congressional majority will “have the chance to make these next four years some of the most consequential in our nation’s history.”
Johnson echoed a statement from Mr. Trump’s inauguration speech when he said, “America’s Golden Age has begun,” and he praised a “resurgence of patriotism, unity, and hope for the future.”
What are the start and end times of Trump’s speech?
At 9 p.m. ET, the president is scheduled to start his speech. It’s unclear how long it will run. The duration of Mr. Trump’s 2017 joint speech to Congress during his first term was around one hour. According to the American Presidency Project, his State of the Union speeches lasted an average of 80 minutes over the following three years.
Background information for Trump’s speech to Congress
Six weeks after taking office for a second term, Mr. Trump gave his speech to Congress. According to a CBS News poll issued on Sunday, Americans are now in agreement that he is bringing about significant changes to the way the government operates, but they differ on whether they think the changes are better or worse.
Together with Elon Musk, whom he appointed to head the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, the president has worked to drastically restructure the government bureaucracy and save costs. While cutting back on large portions of government spending, DOGE has been collaborating with the heads of Cabinet departments and agencies to reduce the size of the government workforce. To draw attention to the people who were directly affected, some Democrats are inviting former government workers who were let go as a result of the DOGE cuts as guests to Tuesday’s speech.
Illegal border crossings decreased dramatically during Mr. Trump’s first month in office, and the Trump administration has also attempted to strengthen border security with a government-wide immigration crackdown in its first six weeks in office. Nevertheless, the administration has encountered challenges in carrying out what it claims is the biggest deportation campaign in American history within the U.S. interior. Frustrated that the agency has not made enough arrests and deportations, top Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials have been moved in recent weeks. Additionally, ICE’s detention capacity has been overextended, as seen by the recent over110% occupancy of detention facilities.
Even if recent polls have shown support for Mr. Trump’s immigration policies, the majority of Americans believe he should put the economy and inflation first. Businesses and consumers are now afraid of a trade war as a result of the president’s pursuit of tariffs. After a month-long delay, 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico are scheduled to go into force on Tuesday.
With a slim majority in the House and divergent opinions on how to proceed, Republicans in Congress have been battling to pass legislation that would forward Mr. Trump’s objectives. The House passed a budget resolution last week that extends the 2017 tax cuts and sets the stage for the president’s agenda on military, energy, and border security. However, lawmakers have taken a different tack, so it’s unclear how the budget plan would fare in the Senate.
Even after just six weeks, Mr. Trump’s return to the White House has had a significant impact on the global scene. Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the president of Ukraine, was asked to leave the White House last week without signing a crucial multibillion-dollar deal on rare earth minerals after a meeting with him turned into a spat with Mr. Trump and Vice President JD Vance. The White House announced on Monday that it was halting military assistance to Ukraine.
The controversial encounter followed Mr. Trump’s apparent accusation that Ukraine was responsible for the war that Russia initiated and his designation of Zelenskyy as a “dictator,” without mentioning Russian President Vladimir Putin by the same name. Since the Russian invasion three years ago, the United States has given Ukraine billions of dollars in armaments, and a break with Zelenskyy might have a significant impact on Ukraine’s capacity to defend itself.
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