NOTE to students:  Read the information under “Background” below before answering the questions. 

1. a) What is the State of the Union address? What is the purpose of the address?
b) When and where is the State of the Union given?

2. What will be the theme of President Trump’s State of the Union address on Tuesday night?

3. What will be the tone of the President’s address, according to White House officials?

4. List the 5 major areas President Trump will cover in his address.

5. a) What policy will President Trump pursue as he details rebuilding the military?
b) Peace through strength is “a philosophy that guided the U.S. to victory in the Cold War.” From wikipedia: "Peace through strength" is a phrase which suggests that military power can help preserve peace. It is quite old and has famously been used by many leaders from Roman Emperor Hadrian in the first century AD to conservative President Ronald Reagan in the 1980s. Ask a parent or grandparent, “Do you support a U.S. policy of “peace through strength”? Please explain your answer.

6. President Trump’s address will focus on domestic and national security issues. Which of the following do you think are most important for President Trump to include in his State of the Union address? Explain your answer.

1. the economy/jobs/tax reform
2. terrorism
3. North Korea nuclear threat
4. China, Russia and/or Iran
5. illegal immigration crisis
6. building a wall on our southern border
7. ObamaCare
8. education
9. the opioid crisis
10. other (explain)

7. Ask a parent what issues he/she thinks President Trump should focus on in his State of the Union, and to explain his/her answer.

CHALLENGE:

• For the text and video of the 2018 State of the Union address, go to whitehouse.gov/live, the White House youtube page, or c-span.org.)
• Watch the State of the Union address and answer the following questions:

1.  Tone is the attitude a speaker takes towards a subject. What was the tone of President Trump’s 2018 State of the Union address?

2. What was the overall theme of the president’s speech?

3.  a) What general statement did President Trump make about the economy in his address to the nation?
b) What is your reaction to this encouraging statement?
c) Ask a parent the same question.

4. List some of the things the President promised to do to improve the economy.

5.  What new initiatives did President Trump propose in his State of the Union?

6.  Which issues did the President bypass altogether, or just mention briefly?

7.  What issue presented by President Trump was the most important to you?  Did any aspect of the speech disappoint you?  Explain your answers.

8. a) Do you think the President is focusing on the correct issues? Explain your answer.
b) Ask a parent the same question.

10. Watch/read the Democratic response to the President’s State of the Union on live TV following the President's SOTU or at c-span.org. The response speech is shorter and often given as a rebuttal to the opposition party's ideas and plans. This practice began once television became a major part of politics. According to the Senate's website, the first opposition party response to a State of the Union speech was in 1966 when then-Senate Majority Leader Everett Dirksen (R-Illinois) and House Minority Leader Gerald Ford (R-Michigan) gave a response to President Lyndon Johnson's State of the Union address. What do you think of Massachusetts Rep. Joe Kennedy III's response?