In modern-day practice, is there a State of the Union Message every year?
There have been occasional variations concerning the State of the Union Message since World War II. Some recent Presidents (Reagan in 1981, Bush in 1989, and Clinton in 1993, for instance) have chosen not to give an official State of the Union Message the year they were first inaugurated as President, having just previously delivered a keynote inaugural address. Some (such as Reagan and Bush) have chosen not to give a message immediately prior to their departure from office (although President Reagan delivered a televised farewell address from the Oval Office on January 8, 1989). On the other hand, outgoing and incoming Presidents have occasionally given successive State of the Union Messages within weeks of each other. For instance, President Trumans final message, delivered in printed form to Congress on January 7, 1953, was followed by President Dwight Eisenhowers first message, delivered in person at the Capitol on February 7 of the same year. This circumstance was repeated by Pres
