The State of the Union is the biggest annual event for political Washington. | Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images Congress Pelosi re-invites Trump to deliver State of the Union

Speaker Nancy Pelosi has sent a letter to President Donald Trump asking him to deliver the State of the Union address on February 5.

Pelosi had previously rescinded her invitation to Trump to give the address on Jan. 29, citing security concerns due to the government shutdown. Trump and Republicans were furious at Pelosi's unprecedented move, but they were powerless to prevent it.


With the shutdown ending last Friday after a five-week stalemate between Trump and Hill Democrats, negotiations began over the weekend to reschedule the State of the Union as soon as possible, according to several sources. Those calls quickly led to Pelosi extending an invitation to Trump for next week.

“When I wrote to you on January 23rd, I stated that we should work together to find a mutually agreeable date when government has reopened to schedule this year’s State of the Union address," Pelosi said in her Monday letter to Trump. "In our conversation today, we agreed on February 5th.”

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The State of the Union is the biggest annual event for political Washington, and the logistics needed to put it together are formidable. Security for the address is extraordinary, as the president, vice president, Cabinet members, Congress, Supreme Court, military leaders and diplomatic corps gather inside the Capitol.

The event is declared a "National Special Security Event," meaning extensive resources and thousands of personnel from the federal government — including some military troops — are brought in to help guard the area.

For the media — especially the TV networks — the address requires a huge investment in equipment and resources as well. Hundreds of reporters attend the session, with Statuary Hall turned into an "interview room" for dozens of TV cameras.

