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President Donald Trump steps to the podium to begin his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington, Jan. 30, 2018. Behind Trump are Vice President Mike Pence and House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin.
President Donald Trump steps to the podium to begin his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington, Jan. 30, 2018. Behind Trump are Vice President Mike Pence and House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin.
USA

Live Blog: State of the Union

update

President Donald Trump is delivering his first State of the Union address. His address is highlighting a strong economy and call for bipartisan action on immigration. The televised speech before a joint session of Congress comes a year after Trump took office and about a week after a three-day government shutdown spawned by a fight over the federal government budget and how to deal with hundreds of thousands of immigrants who years ago came to the country illegally as children.

State of the Union addresses are traditionally one of the president's biggest platforms, since the speech is broadcast on all major television networks during prime time (the time at which the audience is expected to be the largest).

But the situation could be different for Trump, who provides a steady stream of thoughts to the millions of followers of his social media pages.

Even still, it's a time for the president to look "presidential," surrounded by cheering lawmakers in the U.S. Capitol as he lays out his accomplishments and priorities for the year.

The White House released excerpts from Trump's State of the Union speech (as prepared for delivery) several hours before the congressional address.

Among the excerpts:

• Together, we are building a SAFE, STRONG, and PROUD America.

• We want every American to know the dignity of a hard day’s work; we want every child to be safe in their home at night, and we want every citizen to be proud of this land that we love.

Reporters gather in preparation for interviews after the State of the Union address in Statuary Hall on Capitol Hill in Washington, Jan. 30, 2018.
Reporters gather in preparation for interviews after the State of the Union address in Statuary Hall on Capitol Hill in Washington, Jan. 30, 2018.

The White House released excerpts from Trump's State of the Union speech (as prepared for delivery) several hours before the congressional address.

Among the excerpts:

• Just as I promised the American People from this podium 11 months ago, we enacted the biggest tax cuts and reform in American history.

• Our massive tax cuts provide tremendous relief for the Middle Class and small businesses.

• Since we passed tax cuts, roughly 3 million workers have already gotten tax cut bonuses – many of them thousands of dollars per worker.

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