The response to the State of the Union address is a rebuttal speech, often brief, delivered by a representative (or representatives) of the opposition party following a presidential State of the Union address. When the president is a Democrat, the rebuttal is given by a Republican, and vice versa.
Contents
The practice began in 1966 when Republican U.S. Senator Everett Dirksen (Illinois) and U.S. Representative Gerald Ford (Michigan) appeared on TV to offer a response to the address by Democratic President Lyndon Johnson. The opposition party's response has varied in format, ranging from a prerecorded 45-minute TV program in 1970 to a call-in show in 1972 where a panel of congressmen answered unrehearsed questions from callers. Since the late 1980s, it usually has been a televised speech given soon after the State of the Union address.
Three people have given both a response and a State of the Union address: Democrat Bill Clinton and Republicans Gerald Ford and George H. W. Bush.
List of responses
1First organized, televised response to a presidential State of the Union message
2Denotes prerecorded program
3Randomly selected Democratic voters participated in this televised discussion
Non–State of the Union responses
In addition to responses to official State of the Union addresses, there have been five official responses to non–State of the Union speeches which were delivered soon after presidential inaugurations.