President Donald Trump's first State of the Union will be his opportunity to the height of political theater, like past speeches from presidents. | Jim Lo Scalzo/Pool image via AP Photo Truth talk on the State of the Union

SOME TRUTH TALK ON THE STATE OF THE UNION …

IT’S KIND OF USELESS …


-- TRUMP is unlike any president, in that he shares his unbridled opinions on Twitter every day. What’s the difference if he does it from the House floor? And even if he does offer something completely new and different, he could undo it with one tweet.

-- IT’S THE HEIGHT OF POLITICAL THEATER: Republicans will whoop and cheer for President Trump. Democrats will jeer. Both sides bring guests to suit their political viewpoints. Democrats will leave saying they hoped for bipartisanship, but the president missed the mark -- a few will find a few points that they like, and say they hope the president’s action meets his words.

-- THIS SHOULD BE EASY: The president of the United States should be able to knock the State of the Union out of the park every single year. You don’t get to be president of the United States if you can’t read a speech off a teleprompter with a bit of gusto.

-- PRESIDENT PROPOSES, CONGRESS DISPOSES: Much of what any president says is, well, just words. Presidents routinely propose a massive agenda from the House floor -- only to run into the reality of Congress. This is especially true in an election year.

… BUT IT MATTERS …

-- THE AUDIENCE: The president can never reach as large a television audience as he does during the State of the Union. THE POMP reminds people who is in charge.

-- ANYTIME TRUMP TALKS, PEOPLE LISTEN: And anytime he acts “presidential” and stays on script and acts like his predecessors, all of the pundits and lawmakers ooh and ahh and speculate that this is the time Trump is going to turn the corner and become a more traditional leader of the free world. Foreign leaders, lobbyists and others will parse every word, phrase and policy prescription like a fortune teller looking at their crystal ball.

POLITICO Playbook newsletter Sign up today to receive the #1-rated newsletter in politics Email Sign Up By signing up you agree to receive email newsletters or alerts from POLITICO. You can unsubscribe at any time. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR …

NANCY COOK: “5 things to watch at Trump’s first State of the Union”: “1) Will Trump stay on script? … 2) Will Trump talk about health care? … 3) Will Trump say what he wants on immigration? … 4) Will the president mention Russia – or the investigation into whether he obstructed justice? … 5) Will Trump try to be bipartisan?” http://politi.co/2DM3B1v

-- DEMOCRATS’ ‘YOU LIE’ MOMENT: In 2009, South Carolina Rep. Joe Wilson screamed “you lie” at President Barack Obama when he said “illegal immigrants” would not get health insurance under his proposed plan. Well, put simply, Democrats believe -- with a considerable amount of gusto -- that Trump is not on the level. Let’s see if they do something equally silly.

THE PRESSURE IS ON … NOT JUST FOR TRUMP: REP. JOE KENNEDY (D-MASS.), a darling of the Democratic party, is giving the Democrats’ response. The advice you hear for this role: do no harm. Rarely are the responses memorable except for gaffes. Think Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and the awkward water drinking incident. Or, former Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, at the time considered a GOP presidential contender, who gave a universally panned 2009 speech. Massachusetts Playbooker Lauren Dezenski on how “Viral videos fuel Kennedy rise” http://politi.co/2nlNHRf

THE RESISTANCE … A PEEK INTO THE DEM’S WAR ROOM: The DNC will have 30 researchers and rapid responders in a war room to fact check Trump in real time. They will also be active on social media with reaction videos and interviews with Dreamers.

-- A PROTEST along the motorcade route has drawn the interest of thousands on Facebook. http://bit.ly/2Eo37M6

--AIRBNB is launching a new ad timed to the State of the Union with the tagline “Let’s open doors, not build walls.” It’s meant to tout Haiti, El Salvador and Africa. The English-language version of the ad http://bit.ly/2FvFqkd

THAT ALL BEING SAID, we’ll be there tonight, and we’ll bring you some fun scenery tomorrow morning.

WHAT REPUBLICANS WANT TRUMP TO TALK ABOUT -- SENATE MAJORITY LEADER MITCH MCCONNELL’S SOTU OP-ED in the Louisville Courier-Journal: “The Trump administration has worked with the Republican Congress to improve the lives of the American people. While liberal Washington Democrats have obstructed the president’s agenda at every turn to satisfy the far-left, Republicans have remained focused on the issues important to middle-class families and workers.” http://cjky.it/2GvmXpp

-- BURGESS EVERETT: “Republicans seek to tame Trump on trade”: “Fresh off new tariffs aimed at imported washing machines and solar panels, GOP lawmakers fear a round of tariffs targeting steel and aluminum — or worst of all: a sustained attack on NAFTA and dissolution of the trade agreement entirely. Trump’s populist trade policies dominated the Senate GOP’s strategy sessions last week, privately eliciting handwringing from the party’s large bloc of free traders, according to GOP sources familiar with the matter.

“As the White House teases a conciliatory approach for Trump’s first State of the Union, Republicans hope he also will offer them an olive branch on one of the most yawning divides between the president and his party. ‘That would be welcome,’ said Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn of Texas, whose state is a key beneficiary of the North American Free Trade Agreement. ‘I don’t want us to shoot ourselves in the foot by terminating NAFTA or creating anxiety where it’s not necessary.’” http://politi.co/2nrkYcN

CHUCK SCHUMER OP-ED -- ONTO INFRASTRUCTURE -- WAPO: “Chuck Schumer: What I’m listening for in Trump’s State of the Union”: “When President Trump addresses the nation in his first official State of the Union on Tuesday night, he should urge Congress to deliver a substantial investment in our nation’s infrastructure. On this issue, Democrats agree with the president: America’s physical infrastructure is the backbone of our economy, and we have fallen behind. If we do not quickly repair and modernize our infrastructure, we risk ceding the next century of global economic leadership to China or India.” http://wapo.st/2FuAbRT