Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) on Friday invited President Biden to deliver his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress on Feb. 7, and the president promptly accepted.
“The new year brings a new Congress, and with it, a responsibility to work towards an economy that is strong, a nation that is safe, a future that is built on freedom, and a government that is accountable,” McCarthy said in a letter to Biden, repeating taglines from House Republicans’ “Commitment to America” agenda released ahead of the midterm elections.
“The American people sent us to Washington to deliver a new direction for the country, to find common ground, and to debate their priorities,” McCarthy said. “In that spirit, it is my solemn obligation to invite you to speak before a Joint Session of Congress on Tuesday, February 7, 2023 so that you may fulfill your duty under the Constitution to report on the state of the union. Your remarks will inform our efforts to address the priorities of the American people.”
The president accepted the invitation.
“We have received Speaker McCarthy’s kind invitation, and the president has accepted it and looks forward to delivering the State of the Union address on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement.
The event will mark McCarthy’s first State of the Union address as Speaker.
Biden faces a new GOP House majority that has already started an avalanche of investigations into his administration and his family and that is gearing up to pressure him to cut government spending as a condition of raising the debt ceiling.
Brett Samuels contributed.