March 01, 2017

10 Things to Watch for in Trump’s Address to Congress

Donald Trump’s speech tonight will be, like everything he does, a spectacle. The last time Trump had such a stage was his inaugural, where all of official Washington stood behind him as he looked out over what (in his mind) were trillions of people. But tonight, he will be looking right into the eyes of Congress, his Cabinet, the Joint Chiefs, the Supreme Court, and diplomatic corps. He can’t resist working the room — name-checking, fawning, heckling — so expect this to be the wackiest joint session address you’ve ever seen.

But we’ll be listening for what Trump says about substance (that is, if he can refrain from attacking the press and refuting the numbers at his inauguration). So in that spirit, here are the top 10 things we hope to hear about in Trump’s speech tonight. These can be used as checklist to grade the president — and we’ll offer our take on how we think he did later in the week.

The first three are questions that President Barack Obama posed in his final State of the Union address over a year ago, but are even more relevant today.

Read the full article at Foreign Policy.

  • Podcast
    • October 4, 2024
    Exploiting Russian Weakness: Moldova and Georgia at a Crossroads

    Later this month, both Moldova and Georgia will hold crucial elections with the potential to profoundly shape their futures. As Russia attempts to reassert dominance along its...

    By Andrea Kendall-Taylor & Nicholas Lokker

  • Reports
    • October 3, 2024
    Exploiting Russian Weakness

    Introduction Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has created ripple effects that extend well beyond Ukraine’s borders. Reverberations from the war have been particularly p...

    By Nicholas Lokker & Andrea Kendall-Taylor

  • Podcast
    • September 30, 2024
    What Can We Expect from a Harris-Walz Foreign Policy?

    As the 2024 presidential elections approach, there is increasing speculation about the potential implications for U.S foreign policy. Today on Brussels Sprouts, we will have t...

    By Andrea Kendall-Taylor & Jim Townsend

  • Video
    • September 24, 2024
    Andrea Kendall-Taylor and the Axis of Upheaval

    On the Russian Roulette podcast from CSIS, Andrea Kendall-Taylor discusses the rise of cooperation between Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea, in what she has dubbed 'the ax...

    By Andrea Kendall-Taylor, Max Bergmann & Maria Snegovaya

View All Reports View All Articles & Multimedia