The White House is preparing multiple State Of The Union speeches because Trump might give his SOTU at a rally.
NBC’s Geoff Bennett reported, “The speechwriters are preparing a speech that has different passages. Some of those passages lend themselves to the president delivering a speech in a different venue. Maybe not the Capitol, maybe at a rally. Working to report that out.”
Video:
Congress doesn't want him, so Trump may give his SOTU at a rally. https://t.co/R74jWo3giB pic.twitter.com/78EY4f8Wdk
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— Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) January 22, 2019
CNN’s Jim Acosta confirmed the NBC News report:
Trump could deliver his State of the Union away from the Capitol and might even do a rally, senior official confirms. “Contingencies need to be planned,†official says.
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) January 22, 2019
Trump might do the SOTU at a rally
Giving the State Of The Union address at a rally would mean that it isn’t actually a State Of The Union. The whole point of the State Of The Union is a constitutionally mandated update to Congress, “The President “shall from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union, and recommend to their Consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient.†(US Constitution: Article II, Section 3).
Trump can’t just hold a rally in South Dakota and call it the State Of The Union.
The president could submit his address in writing and then head out to Montana to deliver the SOTU, but the whole point of doing the address in front of Congress is to have the national spotlight on the president.
The White House has no idea where Trump is going to give the SOTU
It looks like Trump just decided to give the State Of The Union, and the White House has no idea where it is going to happen. This whole mess could have been avoided if Trump reopened the government. Trump could end up humiliating himself by giving his SOTU address in a Walmart parking lot in Oklahoma. While government workers suffer and starve, Trump is trying to scheme ways to get what he wants.
Everyone must feel pain from the shutdown but Donald Trump.
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Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
