February 7, 2023

President Joe Biden will speak to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night for his second State of the Union address, updating the public on his actions as head of the executive branch. But why is he doing it? What will he say? And how can you watch?

Here’s what you need to know:

When is Joe Biden’s 2023 State of the Union address?

Biden will deliver his second State of the Union address at 9 p.m. EST Tuesday, Feb. 7.

What is the State of the Union?

The State of the Union is an annual speech the president of the United States gives to Congress every year as part of his duties outlined in the U.S. Constitution: “He 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.”

How can you watch the State of the Union?

You can watch the address through the White House’s YouTube channel. ABC, CBS, CNBC, CNN, FOX, MSNBC, NBC, NewsNation, PBS, Telemundo and Univisión will all broadcast the speech on TV.

PolitiFact’s team of reporters and editors will be watching the address to fact-check the president’s remarks live, just as we do every year. You can follow along with us live on Twitter or get a roundup of our coverage the next day.

What will Biden discuss in his address?

While we don’t yet have excerpts of what he will say, Biden could touch on several high-interest topics during his speech, such as police reform after the death of Tyre Nichols, the looming fight over raising the debt ceiling and the case for additional aid to defend Ukraine.

Who is giving the 2023 State of the Union response?

Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders will deliver the Republican response to the State of the Union. Rep. Juan Ciscomani, R-Ariz., will also give the address in Spanish.

Rep. Delia Ramirez, D-Ill., will give a progressive response to both Biden’s address and the Republican address. In 2022, Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., delivered a response to Biden’s first State of the Union address on behalf of the Working Families Party.

How many campaign promises has Biden kept halfway through his term?

PolitiFact has been tracking Biden’s 99 campaign promises since his first day in office. When we checked in at the halfway point of his term, we found he has kept many promises around health care, but has been less successful on pledges about criminal justice and has a mixed record on immigration.

We also keep track of Biden’s record with the Truth-O-Meter. (Read more about our process for researching and rating fact-checks.)

This article was originally published by PolitiFact, which is part of the Poynter Institute. See more of their work here.

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Ellen Hine is an audience engagement producer with PolitiFact with a passion for connecting people to the information that will help them lead their best…
Ellen Hine

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