With congressional Republicans always on the lookout for new ways to thwart Bill Clinton, they’re mulling over one shocking option: denying him the opportunity to deliver a State of the Union address. The Congress does not have to open its chamber to the president; the Constitution merely requires the chief executive to “give to the Congress information of the State of the Union,” and only “from time to time” at that. The tradition of making it a yearly speech before an assembly of the House and Senate began this century, with Woodrow Wilson.
Still, a tradition is a tradition, and denying it to Clinton would be a major dis. That may not trouble GOP leaders. They say canceling the speech would send a message that Washington’s business-as-usual rules no longer apply. Recent reports that the White House is planning to use the January 23 address as a vehicle to bash the GOP for its budget antics have only bolstered the resolve of those Republicans inclined to administer this rebuke. Odds are, though, that cooler heads (i.e., Bob Dole) will prevail.
