Life goes on….
Speaker Nancy Pelosi invited President Trump to give the State of the Union address on Feb. 4, a sign that business is operating as usual in the nation’s capital, even after the House impeached the president two days ago.
In a letter to Mr. Trump on Friday, Ms. Pelosi wrote, “In the spirit of respecting our Constitution, I invite you to deliver your State of the Union address before a joint session of Congress.”
The president accepted the invitation, said a White House spokesman, Hogan Gidley.
While the invitation is customary, it was notable this year because the president has lobbed insults at Ms. Pelosi in recent days for leading the House to approve two articles of impeachment against Mr. Trump related to his pressure campaign on Ukraine….
image from 2018 speech …pbs.org
Although this is a trivial quibble, “respecting our Constitution” by delivering a State of the Union message does not actually require Congress to ask for, nor the President to deliver, such a message in a speech.
Article II, section 3, of the Constitution simply requires the President “from time to time to give to the Congress information of the state of the Union and to recommend to their consideration such measures as he shall consider necessary and expedient”.
Most (if not all) of the 18th and 19th century presidents conveyed a written message, some of them short and some of them very long.
But in recent times I believe the speech is asked for and given in person….
Ok the House site says …
First radio broadcast of Message: President Calvin Coolidge, 1923.
First television broadcast of Message: President Harry Truman, 1947.
First televised evening delivery of Message: President Lyndon Johnson, 1965.
First live webcast on Internet: President George W. Bush, 2002.
First high definition television broadcast of Message, President George W. Bush, 2004.