State of the Union

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State of the Union
? The President shall from time to time give to
Congress information of the State of the Union
and recommend to their Consideration such
measures as he shall judge necessary and
expedient. Article II, Sec. 3
? While Washington delivered the first Annual
Message orally, Thomas Jefferson thought doing so
was too kingly and opted to write his Annual
Messages. This precedent was followed for 112
years until Woodrow Wilson revived the spoken
form in 1913.
? The State of the Union has evolved into being
more than a mere recommendation to Congress, it
has become an address to the entire world.
Coolidges 1923 speech was the first broadcast on
radio Trumans 1947 speech was the first to be
broadcast on television.
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If the President has personal force and cares to
exercise it, there is a tremendous difference
between his sic message and the views of any
other citizen either outside Congress or in it
that the whole country reads them and feels the
writer speaks with an authority and a
responsibility which the people themselves have
given him. Woodrow Wilson
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Campbell Jamieson
The State of the Union message is characterized
by 3 processes
? Public Meditation on Values
? Assessment of Information and Issues
? Policy Recommendations
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Campbell Jamieson
The State of the Union message is characterized
by 3 processes
Each State of the Union message incorporates, to
varying degrees, specific characteristics related
to each of these processes.
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Public Meditations on Values
Public meditations exemplify the symbolic
processes by which a collectivity of individuals
comes to see itself as an entitya group, a
community, a nation with an identity that
unifies its members and distinguishes them as a
group.
The State of the Union traditionally reaffirms
Americans that, just as in the past, problems
will be solved. The address exceeds the
individual president and is a reflection upon the
institution of the presidency.
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Assessments of Information and Issues
? Historically, each State of the Union examines
to some degree contingent national issues,
foreign affairs, commerce, civil rights, and
immigration.
? This enables them to assess present issues in
relation to the past and future, keeping in mind
the idea of an ongoing institution despite the
individuals temporary occupation.
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Policy Recommendations
?This aspect of the speech provides an
opportunity for Presidents to adjust members of
Congress and the public to new circumstances.
?A good State of the Union will follow
recommendations with arguments founded upon
either facts or fundamental premises.
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FDRs Four Freedoms - January 6, 1941 (State of
the Union)
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Reagan's 1988 State of the Union
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Shifting Focus