On the heels of yesterday’s Super Tuesday primaries and in the middle of an ongoing government funding saga, tomorrow night President Joe Biden will offer his State of the Union (SOTU) address to a joint session of Congress.
The speech is one of the most anticipated annual events in Washington, D.C. Do Americans feel the same, and why does the president travel down Pennsylvania Avenue each year to give this speech anyway? Also: what is President Biden likely to say in his remarks tomorrow night?
Let’s take a look.
What Are The Origins Of The State Of The Union?
According to Article II, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution, the commander in chief must “from time to time give to the Congress information of the State of the Union, and recommend to their consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient.”
The constitution offers no more information about the State of the Union (SOTU) than that single line. It does not, for example, say when the address must be given. It does not even say this type of address may be given only once a year. In fact, the next portion Article II, Section 3 says the president “may, on extraordinary occasions, convene both Houses, or either of them” in order to give remarks.
The constitution also does not require the president to give this report in person. While the first two U.S. presidents — George Washington and John Adams — gave their addresses to a live audience, in 1801, President Thomas Jefferson submitted a written State of the Union. For the next 112 years, until President Woodrow Wilson’s in person remarks in 1913, presidents simply submitted a written statement on the State of the Union to Congress. They did not come to the U.S. Capitol to make an address.
The American people did not become part of the SOTU audience until 1923, which was the year the address was first broadcast nationally on radio. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt gave the first televised SOTU speech in 1947 and President Lyndon Johnson brought the SOTU to prime time in 1965.
But are Americans still tuning in?
Not really. In a country with 332 million residents, only 27.3 million people, or about 8 percent of the population, tuned into the address in 2023. That number was down from 33 million in 2013, when President Barack Obama gave the remarks, and 66 million in 1993, when President Bill Clinton was at the podium. The last SOTU to have more than 60 million viewers was President George W. Bush’s 2003 address, which occurred on the precipice of the Iraq War.
What are the missing 92 percent of U.S. residents at risk of missing if they do not tune in tomorrow night?
According to early news reports, a speech with an eye toward Election 2024.
What Will President Biden Address In The 2024 State Of The Union?
President Biden reportedly received the first draft of his SOTU from his speechwriters late last month and the remarks already have undergone several revisions. Still, thanks to news reports, we have an idea of the major policy issues the president is likely to cover.
According to Politico, the centerpiece of the address will be a “unity agenda” that attempts to bring the two parties together on artificial intelligence, antitrust, and consumer protection. As AXIOS reported, the “unity agenda” also will address how to curb fentanyl use, expand health care benefits for veterans, and implement new programs to end cancer.
As part of his remarks on consumer protection, President Biden is likely to highlight the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB’s) efforts to rein in “junk fees” (a topic that has not unified both parties), but he also will address health care affordability. Specifically, the president plans to announce a new federal task force that will offer ideas for easing medical and insurance costs. Officials from the U.S. Department of Justice, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and the Department of Health and Human Services will be part of that task force.
The president will highlight other recent efforts to protect consumers. As Politico noted, “Biden has made competition and antitrust a centerpiece of his domestic economic policy, appointing a pair of aggressive enforcers, Jonathan Kanter and Lina Khan, at the DOJ and FTC. He also issued a wide-ranging executive order early in his term directing federal agencies to focus on the issue and established a ‘competition council’ stacked with Cabinet officials, Khan and other agency heads that meets several times a year.”
Republicans are no fans of Khan, of course, so expect some GOP grumbling when President Biden mentions her name.
While news reports indicate President Biden will try to focus as much as possible on his “unity agenda,” this year he will not be able to avoid the most divisive political issues, including the ongoing war in Ukraine (for which conservative Republicans oppose additional funding) and the bloody conflict between Israel and Hamas. (The president is facing unrest from lawmakers from his own party who want him to be tougher on Israel.) AXIOS said the remarks also will address “making the wealthy and corporations pay their fair share” and “saving our democracy.”
President Biden also is expected to devote a portion of his address to immigration. Brace yourself for fireworks here. Republicans are ready to oppose whatever the president has to say on this issue, as the list of guests they have invited to the SOTU demonstrate. According to The Associated Press, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and two other House members are bringing police officers whose recent Times Square fight with migrants caused a political uproar. Additionally, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), who is on the short list to be Donald Trump’s vice-presidential nominee, has invited a Border Patrol officer to join her in the Capitol.
Finally, more than a year after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and in the wake of a controversial state court ruling on in vitro fertilization (IVF), we also can expect the president to address women’s reproductive health. According to The Hill, Democrats have invited fertility doctors, IVF patients, and women from GOP-dominant states who have been denied life-saving abortions and had to travel elsewhere for the procedures.
As readers can imagine, Republicans will have quite a bit to say about the president’s plans.
Who Is Giving The GOP Response To The State Of The Union?
The Republican response to the SOTU will be given this year by Sen. Katie Britt (Ala.) who was elected in 2022 and is the first woman to represent Alabama in the U.S. Senate.
According to former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.), Sen. Britt’s remarks also will be offered with an eye to Election 2024. Indeed, he told The Hill, the rebuttal offers the 42-year-old senator an opportunity to cast herself as another option to be former President Trump’s vice presidential pick.
Sen. Britt was only revealed as the GOP’s SOTU responder last week, so not much has been revealed about her remarks, but party leaders clearly hope she will focus on the economy.
As NBC News reported, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) noted Sen. Britt is “the only current Republican mom of school-aged kids serving in the Senate” and that she is “fighting to preserve the American Dream for the next generation.” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Sen. Britt has “wasted no time becoming a leading voice in the fight to secure a stronger American future.”
While she is only a freshman, Sen. Britt sits on several powerful committees, including the Senate Appropriations Committee (expect to hear about the current budget and a rising national debt) and the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Development Committee. As such, viewers can expect Sen. Britt to have a much different take on financial services and technology oversight than President Biden. Indeed, last year Sen. Britt joined Banking Committee Ranking Member Tim Scott (R-S.C.), House Financial Services Chairman Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.), and a bicameral group of 132 members of Congress in filing an amicus curiae brief to the Supreme Court the court case challenging the constitutionality of the CFPB’s funding structure.
“The Constitution clearly grants Congress power over the appropriations process. The CFPB should be no exception but has been operating outside of this lawful process with little oversight or taxpayer accountability,” Sen. Britt said.
While Democrats want more bank regulation, Sen. Britt blamed federal regulators for last year’s collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank and is skeptical of placing new rules on the industry. Additionally, in keeping with other members of the Republican party, Sen. Britt is a strong supporter of digital currency and would prefer a lighter regulatory touch when it comes to financial innovation.
Like President Biden, Sen. Britt is likely to tackle women’s reproductive health issues, especially since her state is home to the court that recently challenged IVF, and will address immigration, an issue that is at the top of the GOP’s election year agenda.
Interest piqued? Fire up C-SPAN and tune in tomorrow at 9 p.m. ET.