According to the US Constitution, 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.” U.S. Const. art. II, §3, cl. 1.
President Barack Obama will deliver his last State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday, January 12, 2016. Since George Washington’s first address in 1790, presidents have delivered a report to Congress about the state of the union either in person or by written letter.
There is speculation that Obama’s 2016 address will be a non-traditional message. The NY Times provides a well documented account of Obama’s promises and results in How Did He Do? Assessing Obama’s State of the Union Promises. Follow more news and analysis about the speech.
See what your members of Congress are saying about the speech, before, during, and after, on Twitter, Facebook, and official press releases by using Voxgov.com.
Interested in State of the Union messages from past presidents? Check out the outstanding archive at the American Presidency Project. You can also search recent addresses and other presidential documents using HeinOnline.