McCarthy Invites Biden for Feb. 7 State of the Union Speech

By ZEKE MILLER AP White House Correspondent

13:50 JST, January 14, 2023

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden will deliver his second State of the Union address on Feb. 7, the White House said, after House Speaker Kevin McCarthy extended the invitation for him to address a joint session of Congress that day.

It will be Biden’s first address to a divided Congress after Republicans took control of the House this month. It will come as his administration seeks areas of common interest with the newly empowered GOP while also working to avoid a potentially debilitating default if the two parties can’t come together to raise the debt limit in the coming months.

“The new year brings a new Congress, and with it, a responsibility to work towards an economy that is strong, a nation that is safe, a future that is built on freedom, and a government that is accountable,” McCarthy wrote in his invitation to Biden on Friday. “The American people sent us to Washington to deliver a new direction for the country, to find common ground, and to debate their priorities.”

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden accepted McCarthy’s “kind invitation” and looks forward to delivering the speech.