Some Democratic lawmakers plan to boycott Trump’s speech, which president has signaled will run long – key US politics stories from Tuesday, 24 February at a glance
Donald Trump is set to deliver the annual State of the Union address on Tuesday evening, where he is expected to proclaim the success of his first year in office before an American public that polls show has soured on his handling of the issues they care about most.
The speech to a joint session of Congress will be a key moment before the November midterm elections, in which Trump’s Republican allies are defending their slim control of the Senate and House of Representatives. It will take place amid a decline in Trump’s approval ratings fueled by discontent with his handling of the economy and immigration, both issues at the center of his successful re-election campaign in 2024.
The president will deliver his address amid a military buildup over Iran that raises the possibility of Trump ordering strikes against the longtime American adversary, just weeks after his special forces seized the Venezuelan president, Nicolás Maduro, and took him to stand trial on US soil.
The House minority leader, Hakeem Jeffries, said most of his Democratic lawmakers would choose one of two options when it came to the speech: “Attend in silent defiance, or not attend, and send a message to Donald Trump in that fashion.”
