March 3 (UPI) — President Donald Trump will address a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night as he lays out his vision for a second term.
While the speech is not referred to as a State of the Union, which is the presidential address given during subsequent years in office, Trump is expected to discuss the state of his first six weeks since his inauguration as his administration cracks down on illegal immigration, cuts wasteful spending and works to broker an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The president will address members from both chambers of Congress, as well as Supreme Court justices and his Cabinet. Trump has invited other guests, including Elon Musk, who is in charge of cutting government spending through the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency. The speech begins at 9 p.m. ET, with most networks airing it live or streaming it online.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Ky., invited Trump to speak before Congress in a letter delivered shortly after his inauguration.
“It is my distinct honor and great privilege to invite you to address a Joint Session of Congress on Tuesday, March, 4, 2025, in the chamber of the U.S. House of Representatives, to share your America First vision for our legislative future,” Johnson wrote Jan. 25.
On Monday, Johnson warned lawmakers to be “on their best behavior” during Trump’s address.
“We ought to maintain decorum,” Johnson told reporters, despite Republicans controlling both the House and the Senate. “It’s an important event for the country and everybody needs to be on their best behavior. So, I am praying that’s true.”
House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said he and Democratic leaders will attend “to make clear to the nation that there is a strong opposition party ready, willing and able to serve as a check and balance on the excesses of the administration.”
Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., a first-term senator, is slated to deliver the Democratic response following Trump’s speech. Rep. Adriano Espaillat, D-N.Y., will deliver the Spanish language response.
On Monday, the White House called Trump’s joint address — which it titled The Renewal of the American Dream — “must-see TV.”
“President Trump has accomplished more in one month than any president in four years — and the renewal of the American dream is well underway. In his Joint Address to Congress, President Trump will celebrate his extraordinarily successful first month in office while outlining his bold, ambitious and common sense vision for the future,” the White House wrote in a statement.
Trump’s address to Congress comes one day after he ordered a “pause” in military aid to Ukraine following a contentious exchange Friday in the Oval Office with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky. It also comes the same day proposed tariffs on Mexico and Canada are scheduled to go into effect.
“Preparations are underway to welcome POTUS for his joint address to Congress,” Johnson wrote Monday in a post on X. “It’s going to be big!”
Preparations are underway to welcome @POTUS for his joint address to Congress tomorrow night. It’s going to be BIG! pic.twitter.com/N9D96AFdh6— Speaker Mike Johnson (@SpeakerJohnson) March 3, 2025
