US President Donald Trump will touch on the issues like immigration, national security and trade and call for unity in a divided Congress in his annual State of the Union address as he begins the second half of his first term in office.
The annual State of the Union address is the keynote prime time speech by the president to the Congress in which he sets out his legislative agenda and national priorities for the next year and highlights his achievements to the American people.
The speech will be Trump's third to a Joint Session of Congress his initial appearance on February 28, 2017 was weeks after his inauguration and not considered a formal State of the Union.
Contrary to his frequent lashing out against the opposition Democratic leadership, Trump intends to portray a picture of national unity in resolving the challenges being faced by the country.
The president and the Democrats had a 35-day stoush over his proposed wall along the US-Mexico border, which shut down the government and postponed the address.
China, which is being considered as a major challenge for the United States, is expected to figure prominently in his address, which as of Monday was scheduled to last between 60 and 90 minutes.
The US and China have been locked in an escalating trade spat since early 2018, raising import tariffs on each other's goods.
"Choosing Greatness" is the theme of the address.
He will update Congress on the upcoming summit with North Korea, developments in Venezuela and withdrawal of troops from Syria and Afghanistan.
In the address on Tuesday, Trump will express confidence in future and encourage Congress to reject the politics of resistance and retribution, and instead adopt a spirit of cooperation and compromise so we can achieve it.
"Together we can break decades of political stalemate. We can bridge old divisions, heal old wounds, build new coalitions, forge new solutions, and unlock the extraordinary promise of America's future. The decision is ours to make," Trump will say in his address, as per the excerpts of the speech provided by the senior administration official.
Safe and legal immigration system; protecting American workers, rebuilding America with infrastructure; lowering the cost of healthcare and prescription drugs; and protecting America's national security, are expected to be the major topics in his speech. NAFTA, protecting American interests, policies to expand prosperity are among other topics Trump will talk about.
The last two times he spoke before Congress, Trump tried to provide a unifying, bipartisan, optimistic tone, the official noted stating that he we'll be striving to do the same this year.
Describing the first speech as optimistic, second as unifying, the official said Tuesday's speech could be considered visionary in the sense that it will be looking towards the future, offering a common sense path forward with strong bipartisan appeal that transcends the political stalemates of the past.
