Shortly after her swearing-in, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi sent a letter to the President, inviting him to deliver the annual State of the Union address later in January. Now, after weeks of continued debate over funding for a wall, plans have changed.
An Invitation
On January 3rd House Speaker Nancy Pelosi invited President Trump to a joint session of Congress to deliver an annual State of the Union speech. “In the spirit of our Constitution, I invite you to deliver your State of the Union address before a Joint Session of Congress on Tuesday, January 29, 2019 in the House Chamber,” she wrote. [1]
The annual speech is usually delivered by the president to a joint session in the House of Chambers after being invited by the current House Speaker.
The address was originally scheduled for January 29th but has since changed. After weeks of standing at an impasse though, the speech has been rescheduled.
On January 16th Speaker Pelosi urged Trump to reschedule his speech due to “security concerns.” [2] Homeland Security later responded to her concerns saying that “the US Secret Service are fully prepared to support and secure the State of the Union.” [3]
Change in Plans
Since then it has been unsure whether the President is planning on submitting his address in a written format or if he plans on giving the State of the Union address somewhere else.
On January 23rd President Trump tweeted that he was not going to be giving the speech in a different location. Instead, he agreed to wait until the government reopened to deliver his speech.
As the Shutdown was going on, Nancy Pelosi asked me to give the State of the Union Address. I agreed. She then changed her mind because of the Shutdown, suggesting a later date. This is her prerogative – I will do the Address when the Shutdown is over. I am not looking for an….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 24, 2019
….alternative venue for the SOTU Address because there is no venue that can compete with the history, tradition and importance of the House Chamber. I look forward to giving a “great” State of the Union Address in the near future!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 24, 2019
Still up in the Air
By January 25th the government had been opened, and reporters were asking Pelosi whether Trump would be giving his speech on the 29th as scheduled.
“The State of the Union is not planned now,” Pelosi responded. “What I said to the President is when the government is open we will discuss a mutually agreeable date, and I’ll look forward to doing that and welcoming the President to the House of Representatives for the State of the Union when we agree on that.” [4]
So far the speech is still unscheduled, but now that the government is open the House Speaker and the President should be able to agree on a date within the coming week.
Notes:
- ^Eli Watkins, Cnn. “Pelosi invites Trump to deliver State of the Union on January 29.” CNN, 28 Jan. 2019, www.cnn.com/2019/01/03/politics/nancy-pelosi-donald-trump-state-of-the-union/index.html. (go back ↩)
- ^“Pelosi Urges Trump to Reschedule State of the Union Address – Alton MO.” Alton MO, 16 Jan. 2019, www.altonmo.com/politics/government/pelosi-urges-trump-to-reschedule-state-of-union-address-20190116. (go back ↩)
- ^“Secret Service Ready for SOTU Despite Government Shutdown – Alton MO.” Alton MO, 18 Jan. 2019, www.altonmo.com/politics/secret-service-ready-for-sotu-despite-government-shutdown-20190118. (go back ↩)
- ^Clare Foran and Jim Acosta, Cnn. “Pelosi on State of the Union date: ‘Not planned’ yet.” CNN, 28 Jan. 2019, www.cnn.com/2019/01/25/politics/pelosi-state-of-the-union-date/index.html?no-st=1548679522. (go back ↩)
