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State of the Union 2018: Start time, how to stream, what to expect and more

See your streaming options for President Trump's address to Congress.

Matt Elliott Senior Editor
Matt Elliott is a senior editor at CNET with a focus on laptops and streaming services. Matt has more than 20 years of experience testing and reviewing laptops. He has worked for CNET in New York and San Francisco and now lives in New Hampshire. When he's not writing about laptops, Matt likes to play and watch sports. He loves to play tennis and hates the number of streaming services he has to subscribe to in order to watch the various sports he wants to watch.
Expertise Laptops, desktops, all-in-one PCs, streaming devices, streaming platforms
Matt Elliott
3 min read
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President Donald Trump will deliver his first State of the Union address on Tuesday night before a joint session of Congress. (His record-breaking address to Congress in February last year was not officially a State of the Union per se.) 

Streaming options abound to watch the speech. Here's what you need to know to watch Trump's State of the Union address online.

How to watch the State of the Union online

Finding a place to watch the SOTU online will be easy. Most major networks will stream the address, including CBS NewsC-SPAN, PBS and Reuters will offer live streams of the address. You can also watch the State of the Union from the White House pages on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube

CBS will also be fact-checking live right here.

All major broadcast networks, including ABC, CBS and NBC, as well as cable networks such as CNN, Fox News and MSNBC, will broadcast the State of the Union address. They'll also provide streaming options on their websites and apps. Download them here: ABC News appCBS News appNBC News appCNN appFox News app and MSNBC app. (Disclaimer: CNET is a division of CBS.)

En español 

Univision will live stream the address on its website, Facebook page, Twitter page and YouTube channel. Similarly, Telemundo Noticias will live stream the address on its website, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube pages. Both outlets will offer a simultaneous translation of the Estado de la Unión in Spanish.

What to expect during the SOTU address

According to a White House official, the theme of Trump's speech will be "building a safe, strong and proud America." With historically low approval ratings and facing an ongoing federal investigation into his campaign's contacts with Russian government officials, Trump is expected to hit on topics including immigration, infrastructure, the economy and perhaps his administration's crazy 5G plan.

Seated behind Trump during the address will be Vice President Mike Pence and House Speaker Paul Ryan.

Democratic response

Tradition holds that the opposing party gives a response immediately following the President's address. This year, Rep. Joe Kennedy III of Massachusetts, the grandson of Robert F. Kennedy, will give the Democratic response. It's doubtful a live stream from the White House will include Kennedy's speech, but the major networks will offer a live stream of the Democratic response after Trump's speech.

Rep. Maxine Waters of California will give a televised response on BET after Trump's speech as well. Waters is among a number of Democratic lawmakers who have said they plan not to attend Trump's speech in person, including Reps. Earl Blumenauer (Oregon), Pramila Jayapal (Washington), Barbara Lee (California), John Lewis (Georgia), Gregory Meeks (New York), Bobby Rush (Illinois), Albio Sires (New Jersey) and Frederica Wilson (Florida). 

Many female Democratic lawmakers who will attend plan to wear black, in solidarity with the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements protesting sexual harassment and misconduct.

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