Why isn't it called a State of the Union Address? Am I missing some obscure rule?

[yeswecanandwedid]

Thanks in advance.

It's our boys first big speech. I'm excited!

[Trajan]

1. The State of the Union speech is required by the US Constitution ...

I haven't looked into this as of yet .... Anyone ?

[BuyingThyme]

6. ..

"Sometimes, especially in recent years, newly-inaugurated Presidents have delivered speeches to joint sessions of Congress only weeks into their respective terms, but these are not officially considered State of the Union addresses. The address is also most frequently used to outline the President's legislative proposals for the upcoming year."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_of_the_Union_Address

[Old Codger]

11. Actually

The "State of the Union" is required, but it is not required that he get up in front of the media and have it broadcast as they have done...Actually what is required is a report to congress and it was not called "state of the union" until about 1935.

The Twentieth Amendment also established January 20 as the beginning of the presidential term. In years when a new president is inaugurated, the outgoing president may deliver a final State of the Union message, but none has done so since Jimmy Carter sent a written message in 1981. In 1953 and 1961, Congress received both a written State of the Union message from the outgoing president and a separate State of the Union speech by the incoming president. Since 1989, in recognition that the responsibility of reporting the State of the Union formally belongs to the president who held office during the past year, newly inaugurated Presidents have not officially called their first speech before Congress a "State of the Union" message.

[BuyingThyme]

2. Just tradition.

[Clio the Leo]

3. Because he's only been in office for a month....

.... the State of the Union is an address to tell the Congress literally what the state of things are since the last time the President visited them.

What's he gonna say, "well, two weeks ago yada yada yada..." :)

[Thrill]

4. Because he hasn't been in office long enough

to have a state of the union.

[givemebackmycountry]

5. First year - First term Presidents don't give SOTU speeches -

He has not been around long enough to assess the State of the Union.

Even though we all know that is what we will be hearing tonight.

[TTUBatfan2008]

7. Usually a new President doesn't give an address to Congress...

until 1 year into his term, and at that point it's called the State of the Union. But there have been instances where the country was in trouble times so the new President addressed Congress right off the bat. This is one of those times.

[cherokeeprogressive]

8. Boy?

[yeswecanandwedid]

9. Thanks for the answers. nt

[dflprincess]

10. SOTU trivia at Wikipedia may answer your question

SOTU_FACTS

George Washington gave the first State of the Union address on January 8, 1790 in New York City, then the provisional U.S. capital. In 1801, Thomas Jefferson discontinued the practice of delivering the address in person, regarding it as too monarchical (similar to the Speech from the Throne). Instead, the address was written and then sent to Congress to be read by a clerk until 1913 when Woodrow Wilson re-established the practice despite some initial controversy. However, there have been exceptions to this rule. Presidents during the latter half of the 20th century have sent written State of the Union addresses. The last President to do this was Jimmy Carter in 1981.<2>

For many years, the speech was referred to as "the President's Annual Message to Congress." The actual term "State of the Union" did not become widely used until after 1935 when Franklin D. Roosevelt began using the phrase.