It’s time for another State of the Union address from President Donald Trump. (Please excuse my over-the-top enthusiasm.) If you’ve taken a high school government class, you’ll know that the State of the Union was submitted in writing for much of American history, but nowadays it’s conducted in a primetime address before a joint session of Congress.1This gives the president an opportunity to brag about his accomplishments and admonish his political adversaries.

Trump has promised that his speech will be unusuallylong. If you still want to tune in, please joinThe Bulwark’s livestream beginning at 8:50 p.m. EST. If you’d prefer not to have to listen to Trump’s voice for that long but do want to stay engaged, then I have another option for you.

AtThe Bulwark, we like to do things a bit differently. That’s why during tonight’s SOTU I’m going to try something that I don’t think has been done before: host an AMA on Reddit from inside the House chamber. Up in the press gallery, the demands of decorum are fairly strict: You must remain quiet, show no signs of approval or disapproval, and (officially permitted videographers and photographers excepted), you are not allowed to take any photos. But posting to social media or filing an article would be totally within bounds. So tonight, hit me up with your questions, and I’ll give you a perspective from behind the cameras in the most packed room in Washington.

We’ll get started when Trump does. Keep an eye out for our post in ther/politics subredditto join in.

GetPress Passin your inbox every Tuesday and Thursday

The scandal involving Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) keeps getting worse. The Texas lawmaker is alleged to have had an affair with a congressional staffer who later ended her life by self-immolation. Newly releasedtext messagesshow the Republican lawmaker repeatedly pressured the staffer to send him explicit photos.

In more normal times, Gonzales’s behavior would prompt a swift resignation and condemnatory statements from party leadership. But the Republican majority in the House is in dire straits: With the balance of power in the chamber resting at 218–214, the GOP can afford only two defections2with full attendance before they lose their ability to pass legislation.

House Speaker Mike Johnson knows all about thehazards of his shrunken majority; it’s a problem he’s at grips with week in and week out. It’s only natural, then, that he would be reluctant to do anything that could further shrink his majority. In the Capitol Monday, Johnson made a very high-minded–sounding statement to a gaggle of reporters that he wants the investigations into Gonzales to play out before making any kind of judgment.

These are serious accusations, and it must be taken seriously, and I’ve told him he’s got to address that with his constituents and he’s in the process of doing that. My understanding, there’s an investigation in the state of Texas on these matters and has been going for some time, and the Office of Congressional Conduct has also—it’s been reported—they’ve been looking at it. All of that was news to me. But I think, as in every case, that you have to allow the investigations to play out and all the facts to come out. I’ve been intellectually consistent about this, whether you’re talking about Republicans or Democrats. You have to let the system play out.

Johnson added that he opposed the 2023 expulsion of former Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) “because he had been accused of a crime, been indicted, but not found guilty.”

Source: Drudge Report