What to expect in the State of the Union Address
NORTH TEXAS (CBSDFW.COM) – The economy will be a major part of President Joe Biden's State of the Union Address beginning at 8 p.m. before a Joint Session of Congress.
It's the first time during his presidency he faces a divided Congress.
While Democrats remain in control of the Senate, Republicans now control the House.
In an excerpt of his speech released by the White House a short time ago, the President will urge Republicans to work with him. "To my Republican friends, if we could work together in the last Congress, there is no reason we can't work together in this new Congress. The people sent us a clear message."
A CBS News poll found two-thirds of those surveyed, 67%, said they want to hear President Biden discuss the economy and inflation, which is the top issue.
The President has pointed to the strong job growth last month, when 517,000 jobs were created, and that inflation is easing.
But Republicans have sharply criticized the record-high inflation under the Biden administration.
The President will also like discuss the coming debate over raising the debt ceiling.
In an interview with CBS 11, U.S. Representative Jasmine Crockett, D-TX 30th District said, "What we need to do is make sure that we raise the debt ceiling because this is a matter of paying the debts that we've already accrued. We're absolutely always going to have a conversation about making sure that we're smart on the money we are spending."
U.S. Representative Pat Fallon, R-TX 4th District told CBS 11, "I'm not voting for a debt ceiling increase unless we have a concrete plan to balance the federal budget in a reasonable amount of time. It's so out of line now that we can't do it in a year or two, we're going to have to do for a series of years, seven, 10, 12 years."
The President will discuss that suspected Chinese government surveillance balloon that floated across the U.S. and was shot down by the military over the weekend.
Biden will also speak about his administration's efforts to respond to what has been a very big problem for the past several years in North Texas: the deadly illegal drug fentanyl.
Reproductive rights will likely come up as well.
A couple from Austin, Amanda and Josh Zurawski, will be among those sitting in the First Lady's box.
Amanda nearly died during her pregnancy after doctors were unable to intervene to help because they were concerned, they would violate state law if they provided her treatment.
Most abortions in Texas are banned unless the mother's life is at risk.
Arkansas Governor Sarah Sanders will deliver the Republicans' response.
The President's speech comes weeks before he's expected to formally announce he is running for a second term.