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In Trump's speech to Congress, will decorum hold?
President to address joint session for first time Tuesday
congress
This Dec. 8, 2008, file photo shows the House Chamber on Capitol Hill in Washington. A presidential speech to Congress is one of those all-American moments that ooze ritual and decorum. The House sergeant-at-arms will stand at the rear of the House of Representatives on Tuesday night and announce the arrival of Donald Trump before a joint session of Congress by intoning: Mister Speaker, the President of the United States just like always. - photo by Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — A presidential speech to Congress is one of those all-American moments that ooze ritual and decorum.The House sergeant-at-arms will stand at the rear of the House of Representatives on Tuesday night and announce the arrival of Donald Trump before a joint session of Congress by intoning: "Mister Speaker, the President of the United States" just like always.Trump will stride down the center aisle to lusty cheers and hearty handshakes from his Republican supporters. First lady Melania Trump, accompanied by special guests, will smile from the gallery above.From there, though, the president who favors disruption over decorum can take the night in any number of directions. So can the Democrats who oppose him.The White House is promising that Trump's first address to Congress will be a forward-looking one about the "renewal of the American spirit."The speech offers Trump an opportunity to stand before millions of viewers around the United States and the world, and try to reframe his presidency after a chaotic opening in which he's rattled world leaders, railed against leaked information, engaged in open warfare with the press and seen his signature effort to halt some immigration thwarted by the courts.
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