President Donald Trump arrives to take part in a dedication ceremony for Southern Boulevard, in the ballroom at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, on Jan. 16, 2026. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP/Getty Images)
Yeah, there’s the speech. But there’s a lot more on which to focus when President Donald Trump delivers his State of the Union address on Tuesday night. It may range from what "trunks" the fighters wear when they enter the ring to who is serving as their cornermen.
Do you train your attention on the speech itself and what the president says? Does he deliver a stemwinder of an address, veering off into any number of political tributaries and addressing countless grievances? Do you observe the delivery of a president who maintains a mostly loyal MAGA base but struggles with soaring disapproval ratings? What about the presence of Supreme Court justices who ruled against the president last week on tariffs, one of the most seminal issues of his administration? How about his push to double down on tariff policies, despite the decision by the High Court? We haven’t even discussed what the president may say about ICE, unrest in the Twin Cities, the stalemate over funding for the Department of Homeland Security. And that’s to say nothing about the possibility of invading Iran or new questions emerging about Greenland.
This is just an incomplete list regarding the speech. But State of the Union messages are now laced with theater and performance. It extends well beyond what the president may say or do. Lawmakers were practically props a few decades ago, applauding and cheering when they heard the president tout a policy or achievement they endorsed. Or, sitting silently if something came up which they opposed.
Now, State of the Union is a participatory if not contact sport. The president’s most ardent opponents are expected make noise, heckle, boo, shout or even upbraid the president. Think of the iconic photo depicting Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, waving his cane at Trump before House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., banished him from the address last year. Or former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., and Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., on their feet, jeering former President Joe Biden a few years ago.
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Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger during an election night event at the Greater Richmond Convention Center in Richmond, Virginia, on Nov. 4, 2025. (Al Drago/ Getty Images)
Three other prominent Virginians have delivered rebuttals to State of the Union messages in recent years.
Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., was Virginia’s Governor when he responded to then President George W. Bush in 2006. Democrats drafted then Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., to deliver the response to Mr. Bush’s 2007 speech. Republicans tapped then Virginia Republican Gov. Bob McDonnell to speak after Obama’s 2010 oratory. Most responses to presidential State of the Union addresses either don’t go well or are barely remembered. It may be noteworthy if Spanberger hacks through the noise at all and people remember anything from her presentation.
Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., will deliver the Democrats’ response in Spanish. This will be Padilla’s highest profile moment since guards protecting Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem threw the senator to the ground when he interrupted her remarks about ICE during a news conference in Los Angeles in June.
The president will be on screen most of the time during the speech. But the two men who likely rival Trump for screentime are Johnson and Vice President JD Vance. Or at least their torsos will as they’re half visible in the frame, sitting above Trump on the House dais. Johnson will run the show, as he is Speaker of the House. Vance is there in his capacity as president of the Senate. Both are seated directly behind the president.
Johnson owes much of his viability as Speaker to Trump. And Vance’s viability as a potential 2028 presidential candidate may hinge on the president as well. Reporting emerged this week that Trump is questioning advisors about who should carry the MAGA torch after he leaves office: Vance or Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Rubio will appear in the chamber as part of the president’s Cabinet. The network pool feed will inevitably grab shots of Rubio when Trump discusses the January raid in Venezuela, Iran, Greenland, the future of NATO or the U.S.’s relationship with Canada. But Vance will be in the picture — literally — most of the night. Viewers are sure to watch for Vance’s demeanor. Commentators will dissect and parse various reactions and body language of the vice president. And everyone will hear whether he namechecks Vance or Rubio during his remarks.
Lots to see. Lots to examine. Lots to debate. But State of the Union addresses are not what they were. We see the president all the time. Be it on TV. Social media. Memes. Presidential messages and their impacts were curated differently not that long ago. People didn’t see or hear from the president very often. Today, the public hears from this president, in particular, all the time. So that alone diminishes the impact of such a speech.
Still, this is the annual televised boxing match of American politics. Everyone will "score" which side landed blows. Who won which round? And, how badly one side or the other bludgeoned their opponent.
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But we enter the arena on a daily basis in politics and not just once a year. Every day is a slugfest evaluated by the public. And while it remains a big day on the annual political calendar, State of the Union may have shrunk in its impact.
Today’s politics feature a daily undercard bout. And the public is usually obsessed with social media, watching for TKO’s.
Chad Pergram currently serves as Chief Congressional Correspondent for FOX News Channel (FNC). He joined the network in September 2007 and is based out of Washington, D.C.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/reporters-notebook-trumps-state-union-becomes-political-boxing-match-democrats-boycott