U.S. President Donald Trump will deliver his first State of the Union of his second term at 9 p.m. on the 24th (local time; 11 a.m. on the 25th Korea time).
The State of the Union is an event where the president, the top official responsible for U.S. governance, explains the budget and the national economic situation and announces key legislative priorities and domestic and foreign policy directions for the year. Trump's State of the Union will take place at a joint session of Congress attended by all members of the House and Senate.
Trump, who took office on Jan. 20 last year, did give an address at a joint session of the House and Senate on Mar. 4 of the same year, but this is the first time in his second term that he will take the lectern for a "State of the Union."
Trump is expected to lay out his position on current national issues through the live broadcast address. He earlier said it would be "a very long speech because there's a lot to talk about."
Trump has recently lost political momentum since the start of his second term. On the 20th, the Supreme Court dealt a blow to his tariff policy, and in January two Americans were killed by gunfire from an immigration enforcement agent. With the midterm elections coming in Nov., this speech is particularly important to Trump politically.
The part drawing global attention is the tariff policy. After the Supreme Court ruled that imposing a reciprocal tariff based on the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) was unlawful, Trump signed a proclamation imposing a 10% "global tariff" based on Section 122 of the Trade Act as an alternative to the reciprocal tariff. This tariff takes effect at 12:01 a.m. on the 24th, and Trump has said he will raise it to 15%.
A day before the State of the Union, Trump said countries that try to "play games" with the Supreme Court's "outrageous decision" will "face higher tariffs." He is expected to carry this hard-line stance into the State of the Union as well.
Remarks on hard-line immigration policy are also drawing attention. Backlash against the tough crackdown on illegal immigration centered in Minnesota has intensified following the shooting deaths of two Americans by an immigration enforcement agent, leaving Trump's immigration policy facing a public opinion headwind. However, his core base, including "MAGA," still favors cracking down on illegal immigration.
On the 23rd, the day before the State of the Union, Trump designated Feb. 22 as "Angel Families Day," referring to families of victims killed by crimes committed by undocumented immigrants, and said, "We will keep fighting and stop this horrible situation." Because of this, there is an expectation he will deliver a hard-line immigration message in the State of the Union to rally his base.
Meanwhile, Democratic lawmakers are considering protesting by walking out during Trump's address or boycotting the session altogether. Given that they have already clashed with the Trump administration over three large and small "shutdowns" (federal government shutdowns) and the "Epstein files" scandal, they may judge that highlighting a confrontational stance against Trump in the State of the Union would be advantageous in the midterms.