President pushed new jobs, infrastructure, policing initiatives in COVID-era speech to Congress

President Joe Biden, delivering his first address to Congress on Wednesday, laid out what he called a “blue-collar blueprint to build America” now that the nation is getting the pandemic under control.

“America is on the move again” Biden said. “After 100 days of rescue and renewal, America is ready for a takeoff."

Biden spoke to a sparsely populated House chamber, with a select number of lawmakers socially distanced due to COVID-19, on the eve of the 100th day since he was sworn into office.

By waiting until late April, about two months later than the usual date for a first joint address by a new president, Biden was able to take a victory lap for early accomplishments.

He described the ongoing massive vaccination effort, and the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package Congress passed in March, as proof that government still works.

“In our first 100 days together, we have acted to restore people’s faith in our democracy to deliver,” Biden said.

Much of the approximately 70-minute speech was a call to action on new initiatives which, if approved, would go beyond emergency assistance. The packages Biden has proposed are filled with what the White House calls generational changes in transportation, housing, digital infrastructure, home care services, social safety net programs, child care, education and clean energy among others.

In all, Biden has proposed more than $4 trillion in new spending. He made the case for paying the tab through higher taxes on corporations and the wealthiest households.

“Trickle-down economics has never worked,” Biden said. “It’s time to grow the economy from the bottom up and middle-out.”

Beyond new spending, Biden also pushed for action on issues that have become increasingly partisan in recent years, including gun policy, policing reforms, voting access and illegal immigration – a problem that has caused increasing headaches for the new administration.

Biden’s struggles to address the flow of migrants to the southern border and reverse his predecessor’s policies have drawn criticism from both liberals and conservatives. But Republicans have repeatedly attacked Biden over the issue.

Saying he didn’t want to “become confrontational,” Biden also said more Republicans need to join Democrats to improve background checks for gun purchases.

Addressing a body where emotions are still raw and partisan tensions high from the Jan. 6 insurrection, Biden applauded a group of Republican senators who have put forward their own infrastructure proposal to counter his own.

“I’d like to meet those who have ideas that are different,” he said. “I welcome those ideas.”

But Biden signaled he won’t wait too long to get consensus.

“Doing nothing is not an option,” he said. “We can’t be so busy competing with one other that we forget the competition we have with the rest of the world to win the 21st Century.”

Republicans have complained that Biden has given little more than lip service to his calls for unity rather than working with them to produce legislation both sides can support.

After Biden and others in the administration hit the road to continue selling his plans, Biden will sit down with congressional leaders from both chambers at the White House on May 12, press secretary Jen Psaki announced before the speech.

Democrats and Republicans, however, are far apart on both the spending components of Biden’s plans as well as on how to pay for them.

Biden’s speech was the first presidential address to Congress since the pandemic began, with an audience reduced from the usual 1,500 listeners to about 200 lawmakers in the House chamber.

Capitol Hill’s attending physician was there but not the guests of the first lady, Americans invited to the speech to highlight particular policy initiatives or to send other messages. Instead, first lady Jill Biden held a virtual reception in the afternoon for a gun control advocate, a transgender teen, the head of a child development center and others.

Those attending the speech wore face masks, as did Biden as he continued one tradition, walking down the aisle on the House floor (through socially distanced lawmakers) to approach the rostrum.

After removing his mask to speak, Biden recognized another history-making moment. Sitting behind him, for the first time, were two women: Vice President Kamala Harris and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.

“Madam Speaker, Madam Vice President,” Biden said. “No president has ever said those words from this podium – and it’s about time.”

Going into the evening’s address, Biden enjoyed largely positive job approval ratings, particularly for his handling of the pandemic. But polls also show deep partisan divide over how Americans judge him.

Biden heads Thursday to Georgia, the state that in January delivered the two Senate seats needed to give Democrats the majority. Democrats have no votes to spare in the Senate and an only slightly larger margin in the House. Biden needs Democratic advantages in the chambers to pass his agenda.

– Maureen Groppe

Biden gets elbow bump from Pelosi at speech’s conclusion

This time, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi appeared to like what she heard. And it showed.

When President Joe Biden wrapped up his address before a joint session of Congress, Pelosi, seated directly behind him, registered her enthusiasm by giving him an elbow bump.

That’s a far cry from last year, when then-President Donald Trump delivered a divisive State of the Union address amid his first impeachment trial in the Senate.

Pelosi didn’t try to hide her disdain for Trump’s remarks. When he concluded, she held up a copy of the text of his speech and ripped it in half. She later described her actions as “the courteous thing to do considering the alternatives.”

– Michael Collins

‘We have to prove democracy still works,' Biden ends speech saying

President Joe Biden concluded his 70-minute speech by arguing democracy is being tested as he called on Americans to show that government can still work for people.

“Can our democracy deliver on the most pressing needs of our people? Can our democracy overcome the lies, anger, hate and fears that have pulled us apart?” Biden said.

“America’s adversaries – the autocrats of the world – are betting it can’t. They believe we are too full of anger and division and rage.”

He said such critics saw the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol as “proof that the sun is setting on American democracy.”

“They are wrong. And we have to prove them wrong,” he said. "We have to prove democracy still works. That our government still works – and can deliver for the people.”

– Joey Garrison

Biden identifies white supremacy as most dangerous terror threat

President Joe Biden identified white supremacy as a domestic terror threat that the country must remain vigilant against in his first joint address to Congress on Wednesday.

In discussing his order to withdraw American troops from Afghanistan, Biden noted that global terror networks had largely moved beyond the country and that white supremacists posed a bigger threat than foreign actors.

"We won't ignore what our intelligence agencies have determined to be the most lethal terrorist threat to our homeland today: White supremacy is terrorism,” Biden cautioned

"White supremacy is terrorism, and we're not going to ignore that either. My fellow Americans, look, we have to come together to heal the soul of this nation,” Biden said.

Federal law enforcement and analysts within the Department of Homeland Security warn that the threat from white supremacist organizations will remain a persistent threat in the country in the coming years.

– Matthew Brown

Biden urges Congress to act on gun safety: 'Don't tell me it can't be done'

President Joe Biden repeated his calls for Congress to pass measures to expand background checks for gun buyers and to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act, legislation championed by Biden that enshrined federal protections and support for survivors of domestic and sexual violence.

The act would close the "boyfriend" loophole to keep guns out of the hands of abusers, he said. Biden pointed out it's estimated more than 50 women are shot and killed by a partner every month in America.

"Pass it and save lives," Biden said.

Biden also urged Congress to reinstate a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.

"Don't tell me it can't be done. We've done it before - and it worked," he said. "I don't want to become confrontational, but we need more Senate Republicans to join with the overwhelming majority of their Democratic colleagues, and close loopholes and require background checks to purchase a gun."

– Courtney Subramanian

Biden calls on Congress to pass Equality Act

Reinforcing his longstanding support of LGBTQ rights, President Joe Biden again urged Congress to pass a bill outlawing discrimination on the basis of sex, sexual orientation and gender identity.

“I hope Congress can get to my desk the Equality Act to protect the rights of LGBTQ Americans,” he said, referring to legislation that has passed the House but is awaiting a vote in the Senate.

Biden also delivered a message to transgender Americans, who are the target of a wave of restrictive bills in state legislatures.

“To all the transgender Americans watching at home – especially the young people who are so brave – I want you to know that your president has your back,” he said.

– Michael Collins

Biden calls on Senate to pass policing bill by anniversary of George Floyd’s death

President Joe Biden called on the Senate to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act bill by May 26 – the one-year anniversary of Floyd’s death.

“We have all seen the knee of injustice on the neck of Black America,” Biden said, referring to Floyd’s death after he was kneeled on by former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin last year. “Now is our opportunity to make real progress."

Named in Floyd’s honor, the bill seeks to overhaul discriminatory practices in policing. It would bolster police accountability and prevent problem officers from moving from one department to another. The bill, which cleared the House in March, would also end certain police practices that have been under scrutiny.

“I know Republicans have their own ideas,” Biden said. “We need to work together to get a consensus. But let’s get it done next month, by the first anniversary of George Floyd’s death. The country supports this reform. And Congress should act.”

– Joey Garrison

Biden vows to take on China, says Xi is 'deadly earnest' about overseeing China's global rise

President Joe Biden took several jabs at China in his remarks and called out Chinese President Xi Jinping personally.

“He’s deadly earnest about becoming the most significant and consequential nation in the world,” Biden said, calling him an “autocrat” who believes democracy cannot survive in the 21st century.

Biden has not laid out a full-fledged China policy, although he has kept former President Donald Trump’s tariffs against Beijing for now. On Wednesday, Biden said he would be aggressive on fair trade rules and said he told Xi, during their first, two-hour phone call, “that I will defend American interests across the board.”

Biden said he would defend American workers against foreign countries’ subsidies for state-owned enterprises and the theft of American intellectual property, although he did not offer specifics.

“I also told President Xi that we will maintain a strong military presence in the Indo-Pacific … not to start conflict – but to prevent one.”

– Deirdre Shesgreen

Biden says 'it's time' to pull troops out of Afghanistan

President Joe Biden defended his decision to withdraw all U.S. troops from Afghanistan by the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks this year, pointing out that some service members are serving in the same war as their parents once did.

"American leadership means ending America's forever war in Afghanistan," Biden said. "We went to Afghanistan to get the terrorists who attacked us on 9/11. We delivered justice to Osama Bin Laden and we degraded the terrorist threat of al Qaeda in Afghanistan. After 20 years of American valor and sacrifice, it's time to bring our troops home."

At least 2,500 U.S. troops are part of the 9,600 members of the NATO Afghan mission.

– Courtney Subramanian

Biden defends proposed tax hike on wealthy: 'What I've proposed is fair'

President Joe Biden defended his plan to raise taxes on the rich, arguing it’s time for the wealthiest Americans and corporations to pay their fair share.

“I’m not looking to punish anyone,” he said. But, “what I’ve proposed is fair. It’s fiscally responsible.”

Biden is asking lawmakers to raise taxes on the wealthy to pay for his $1.8 trillion American Families Plan, a sweeping package that includes paid family leave, free community college, subsidized child care and other proposals to expand the nation’s social safety net.

Biden repeated his campaign pledge that he would not raise taxes on anyone making less than $400,000 a year. “They’re already paying enough,” he said.

President Biden denounced income inequality and trickle-down economics.

“My fellow Americans: Trickle-down economics has never worked and it’s time to build the economy from the bottom and middle out,” Biden declared.

– Michael Collins and Matthew Brown

Biden: Parents shouldn't have 'to choose between a job and paycheck'

President Joe Biden called on Congress to approve his proposals for subsidized child care and a national paid family leave program – two of the majors components in his American Families Plan.

“The most hard-pressed working families won’t have to spend a dime,” he said of a child care plan that would seek to limit middle-class parents from paying more than 7% of their income on child care. It would apply to qualifying parents who have children ages 5 and younger.

His plan proposes up to 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave paid.

“No one should have to choose between a job and paycheck or taking care of themselves and a loved one – a parent, spouse, or child.

– Joey Garrison

Biden calls for plan to lower drug prices

President Joe Biden called for giving Medicare the ability to negotiate with pharmaceutical companies to lower drug prices, a priority for many progressives that was not included in the American Families Plan.

He noted that Americans pay much more for prescription drugs than patients do in other countries.

Biden proposed using the savings to pay for strengthening the Affordable Care Act and expanding Medicare eligibility and benefits.

“It’s within our power to do it,” Biden said. “Let’s do it now.”

– Maureen Groppe

Biden: 'Any country that out-educates us is going to out-compete us'

President Joe Biden gave a nod to his wife, first lady Jill Biden, as he pitched his education proposal as part of the newly unveiled American Families Plan.

Biden called for a "once-in-a-generation investment" by adding four additional years of public education for every person in America, including two years of universal prekindergarten for every 3- and 4-year-old and two years of free community college. He also called for increasing Pell Grants and investment in Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribal colleges and minority-serving institutions.

The president mentioned his wife, who continues to teach at a local community college aside from her duties as first lady. Jill Biden was among the first to clap when he called for free community college.

"She has long said any country that out-educates us is going to outcompete us – and she'll be leading this effort," he said of the first lady.

"The world is catching up. They are not waiting," Biden said.

– Courtney Subramanian

Biden said he 'welcomes' Republican ideas on infrastructure

President Joe Biden applauded a group of Republican senators who have put forward their own infrastructure proposal as a counter to his plan.

“I’d like to meet those that have ideas that are different,” he said. “I welcome those ideas.”

But Biden signaled he won’t wait too long to get consensus.

“Doing nothing is not an option,” he said. “We can’t be so busy competing with each other that we forget the competition is with the rest of the world to win the 21st Century.”

– Maureen Groppe

Biden renews call for $15 minimum wage

President Joe Biden used his speech Wednesday during a joint session of Congress to renew his call for a $15 minimum wage.

“Let’s raise the minimum wage to $15,” he said, urging lawmakers to send a minimum wage bill to his desk.

Biden pledged during last year’s presidential campaign to push for a $15 minimum wage but has faced opposition from congressional Republicans and some moderate Democrats who fear employers would cut jobs if forced to pay higher wages.

A $15 minimum wage proposal was stripped from his $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package in March. The proposal remains stalled in Congress.

– Michael Collins

Biden: ‘Let’s end cancer as we know it’

President Joe Biden declared, “Let’s end cancer as we know it” as he pushed for Congress to approve his American Jobs Plan that would pump billions into research and development in the U.S.

“This is personal to so many of us,” said Biden, whose son Beau died of brain cancer. “I can think of no more worthy investment. And I know of nothing that is more bipartisan.

He added: “It’s within our power. It’s within our power to do it.”

Biden called for the National Institutes of Health to create an Advanced Research Projects Agency for health that would accelerate cancer research.

– Joey Garrison

Biden pushes infrastructure plan as largest jobs plan since World War II

President Joe Biden touted his $2.3 trillion American Jobs Plan proposal, calling it a “once-in-a-generation investment in America itself” and the largest jobs plan since World War II.

The plan, which would be paid for primarily by a corporate tax increase, would include upgrades in transportation infrastructure such as roads, bridges, highways and airports as well as broadband internet and replacing lead pipes.

It would also seek to expand caregiving for seniors and people with disabilites, among other investments in what the Biden administration has called “human infrastructure.”

“This plan will help these families and create jobs for our caregivers with better wages and better benefits,” he said. “For too long, we have failed to use the most important word when it comes to meeting the climate crisis.”

– Joey Garrison

Biden touts more health insurance coverage

President Joe Biden said 800,000 people have taken advantage of a special enrollment period for health insurance he created for people who buy coverage of their own.

Biden reopened the marketplaces created by the Affordable Care Act for people who don’t get insurance through an employer or a government program like Medicare or Medicaid.

In addition, the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package included expanded premium subsidies. Biden has proposed making those subsidies permanent.

– Maureen Groppe

Biden: Get vaccinated

President Joe Biden called the ongoing vaccination efforts one of the greatest "logistical achievements this country has ever seen," failing to mention the rapid development of vaccines under the Trump administration.

Biden, who has faced questions about whether he credits former President Donald Trump enough for reaching a pivotal moment in the pandemic, has been careful to attribute the success of the vaccine roll-out as a collective effort on the part of frontline health care workers, his team of health experts, vaccination site volunteers and members of the military.

Health experts say both administrations deserve credit for the vaccine roll-out, but the hard work begins now. With more than half of all American adults vaccinated, the Biden administration enters a new phase of trying to vaccinate harder-to-reach populations and those reluctant to get a shot.

The nation can’t let its guard down now, Biden said, after urging people who hadn’t gotten a shot against COVID-19 to get one.

"Go get vaccinated, America. Go and get the vaccination," Biden urged. "They're available."

– Maureen Groppe

Biden begins speech talking about ‘crisis and opportunity'

President Joe Biden started his speech before a joint session of Congress, saying, “Tonight, I come to talk about crisis and opportunity.”

“While the setting tonight is familiar, this gathering is just a little bit different – a reminder of the extraordinary ties we are in,” he said, referring to the reduced crowd in attendance because of the pandemic.

When he entered office 100 days ago, he said he inherited the worst pandemic in a century, an economic crisis and “the worst attack on our democracy since the Civil War."

“Now, after just 100 days, I can report to the nation: America is on the move again.”

‘It’s about time’: Biden praises Harris, Pelosi ahead of speech

President Biden acknowledged Vice President Kamala Harris and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi — the first two women to preside together over a president’s joint address to Congress — in the opening remarks of his joint address to Congress.

“Madam Speaker, Madam Vice President,” Biden said at the outset of his speech. “No president has ever said those words from this podium and it’s about time,” Biden declared to applause from lawmakers.

– Matthew Brown

Biden takes to podium

After winding his way through the socially distanced audience, President Joe Biden took his place at the podium.

Biden sat through eight joint addresses as vice president and many more during his 36 years in the Senate.

Tonight, he was the one greeted with applause as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said she had the high privilege and distinct honor of presenting the president of the United States.

– Maureen Groppe

President Biden enters House chamber for address

President Joe Biden entered the House chamber for his address to a joint session of Congress Wednesday. Biden waded his way through the socially distanced crowd.

– Matthew Brown

Nancy Pelosi calls House to order

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., called the House to order just as Vice President Kamala Harris entered the chamber. Harris and Pelosi made their way through the crowd as lawmakers organized themselves ahead of the president’s speech.

The two lawmakers will sit behind the president during his address to Congress, the first time two women will be seated together at the dais during a presidential address.

– Matthew Brown

Biden to turn up pressure on Congress to act on gun violence

Among the issues President Joe Biden will raise during his address to a joint session of Congress is the need to act on gun violence prevention legislation, according to a White House official.

The president is expected to repeat his calls for Congress to pass two House bills that strengthen background checks for gun buyers and reinstate a ban on assault weapons and high capacity magazines - a measure he helped pass as a senator in 1994.

The comments come weeks after Biden declared gun violence an "epidemic and an international embarrassment" as he announced six executive actions that cracked down on the use of so-called ghost guns, or untraceable weapons that can be constructed from parts purchased online.

Though none of what Biden will say is new, gun safety advocates say his decision to discuss gun safety in his first joint address signals to Congress that it has a responsibility to break the political stalemate and that gun violence prevention remains a top priority in the White House.

– Courtney Subramanian

24 lawmakers tapped to escort Biden

COVID-19 restrictions are preventing Joe Biden from getting a packed House tonight for his address to a joint session of Congress, but he will get a robust escort into the chamber.

Twenty-four lawmakers – 12 senators and 12 House members evenly split between the two parties –have been designated as members of the president’s escort committee.

The list of escorts includes three of the four top congressional leaders – Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. It also includes several rank-and-file members, including Rep. Marianette Miller-Meeks, the Iowa Republican who squeaked out a hotly contested victory by six votes.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is not part of the escort because she will be on the dais welcoming the president into the chamber.

– Ledyard King

Designated survivor: There's no 'designated survivor' for Biden's first speech to Congress. Here's why.

Lawmakers gather ahead of Biden's speech

The vibe in the U.S. Capitol before President Joe Biden's speech was relaxed and amicable with members fist bumping each other and gathering in small clusters – all wearing masks as required by House rules.

Two veterans – Republican Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma and Democratic Rep. Steny Hoyer of Maryland – chatted while sitting next to another before Hoyer had to leave the chamber to join the escort team that will be ushering Biden into the House chamber.

Some members took selfies with each other. Others sat quietly scrolling through their phones as they waited for senators to make their way in. Wyoming Republican Rep. Liz Cheney traded a friendly word with South Carolina Democratic Rep. James Clyburn.

When the president starts speaking, there will only be 200 in attendance, far from the 1,500 that usually attend presidential speeches.

– Ledyard King

Analysis: Why Joe Biden's presidency has been so surprising in the first 100 days

Biden to push for tax hike on the wealthy

President Joe Biden is expected to use tonight’s speech during a joint session of Congress to call on lawmakers to do something that many politicians are loathe to do: Raise taxes.

Biden wants lawmakers to raise taxes on the wealthy to pay for his $1.8 trillion American Families Plan, a sweeping package that includes paid family leave, free community college, subsidized child care and other proposals to expand the nation’s social safety net.

Biden is asking lawmakers to nearly double the capital gains tax for people earning more than $1 million a year and boost the top marginal income tax rate to 39.5% from the current 37%. He’s also proposing to increase the corporate tax rate to 28%, up from the current 21%, to pay for a companion infrastructure and jobs bill.

– Michael Collins

Biden's vaccine goals: Biden blazed past his vaccine target for the first 100 days. Does the Trump administration deserve credit too?

Expect to Biden to talk drug prices

Despite not tackling the high cost of prescription drugs in his American Families Plan released Wednesday, President Joe Biden is still expected to emphasize in his speech Wednesday night to a joint session of Congress that reducing drug prices is a top priority.

Biden’s plan also did not propose lowering Medicare’s age eligibility, a proposal he backed during the campaign that is high on the wish list for progressives like Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. Sanders wants to use the savings from reducing what Medicare spends on drugs to pay for expanding benefits and eligibility.

Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden, the Democratic chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, told reporters Wednesday that Biden left the prescription drug component out of the plan to give Congress “the space to find an agreement.”

– Maureen Groppe

Biden to make $1.8 trillion American Families Plan the focal point of speech

President Biden will use his first speech before a joint session of Congress on Wednesday to unveil a $1.8 trillion proposal for national paid family leave, subsidized child care, universal prekindergarten and free community college.

The president’s American Families Plan is the second piece of his “Build Back Better” economic agenda following the release of a $2.3 trillion infrastructure and jobs plan last month.

The plan would spend $225 billion to create a national three-month, paid family leave policy; $225 billion to cover child-care expenses for low- and middle-income families; $200 billion to make pre-K available for all three- and 4-year-olds, and $109 billion to make two years of community college free for all students.

How to watch Biden's speech: How to watch President Joe Biden's first address to a joint session of Congress on Wednesday

To pay for the sweeping expansion in social programs, Biden wants to increase taxes on income earned from selling stocks and other assets by nearly doubling the capital gains tax rate from 20% to 39.6%, for households making more than $1 million, among other increases. His administration also said it would crack down on tax loopholes used by high-income tax-filers. The jobs plan would be paid primarily by raising the corporate tax rate from 21% to 28%.

– Joey Garrison

American Families Plan: Biden to propose $1.8 trillion 'families plan' with paid leave, child care, universal pre-K, free community college

American Jobs Plan: Joe Biden wants to spend $2 trillion on infrastructure and jobs. These 4 charts show where the money would go.

What Biden will say

President Joe Biden will tell a joint session of Congress on Wednesday "America is on the move again" as it recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic and will boost his legislative priorities.

Here's some of what Biden will say, according to excerpts provided in advance of the primetime speech, which begins at 9 p.m. ET:

• "One hundred days since I took the oath of office – lifted my hand off our family Bible – and inherited a nation in crisis. The worst pandemic in a century. The worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. The worst attack on our democracy since the Civil War," Biden plans to say. "Now – after just 100 days – I can report to the nation: America is on the move again. Turning peril into possibility. Crisis into opportunity. Setback into strength."

• He'll say his $2.3 trillion jobs and infrastructure plan is a "blue-collar blueprint to build America" that "recognizes something I’ve always said: Wall Street didn’t build this country. The middle class built this country. And unions built the middle class."

• On the COVID-19 vaccine: We’re vaccinating the nation. We’re creating hundreds of thousands of jobs. We’re delivering real results people can see and feel in their own lives. Opening the doors of opportunity. Guaranteeing fairness and justice."

– Joey Garrison

Biden speech excerpts: 'America is on the move again,' Biden will say in first speech before Congress

First lady Jill Biden’s first 100 days: How ‘Dr. B’ is transforming antiquated FLOTUS role

2 women will flank the president during the address for first time ever

For the first time in history, two women will sit behind a president during an address to a joint session of Congress.

The historic image during Joe Biden's speech Wednesday is 245 years in the making.

American presidents are flanked by the Speaker of the House and the vice president during such high-profile speeches to Congress, each sitting behind and on either side of the commander in chief.

For the first time, both of those positions are now held by women: Vice President Kamala Harris and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

— Savannah Behrmann and Chelsey Cox

'Representation matters': With Kamala Harris, Nancy Pelosi, 2 women will share the dais for the first time tonight

This is not a State of the Union address

Biden's speech Wednesday evening before a joint session of Congress may seem like a State of the Union address. It is not.

The Constitution says the president "shall from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union," but Biden isn't billing his as such in keeping with tradition.

Since the inauguration of former President Ronald Reagan in 1981, presidents have not delivered the State of the Union the year they left office or were inaugurated, primarily because a president can't really speak about the state of the country just a few weeks in office. That same year is when the new tradition began where the new president addressed Congress without the State of the Union title.

– Jordan Mendoza

The (Not) State of the Union: Why Joe Biden's speech is not officially the annual address

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Biden speaks to Congress: 'Democracy is durable and strong'