"The shadow of crisis has passed, and the state of the union is strong." That was the message of President Obama when he addressed congress members and the country in his sixth State of the Union address Tuesday night.
Economy, climate change and immigration were just some of the key points the president highlighted. But do you know who was the first president to give a State of the Union address?
George Washington and John Adams gave their reports in person in the form of speeches, but Thomas Jefferson started a long tradition of delivering a written speech instead. The first message broadcast on radio was President Calvin Coolidge's speech in 1923. In 1934, Franklin Roosevelt started the modern tradition by delivering what is now known as the State of the Union in front of congress. Harry Truman in 1947 was the first president to have a State of the Union broadcast on television. And in 2002, President George W. Bush's address was the first to be webcast live over the internet.
The annual State of the Union is a chance for the president to formally address congress on his priorities for the year... and to make history. Let's take a look back at 67 years of the State of the Union in 67 seconds.
Each year, the White House chooses special guests to attend the State of the Union. They sit in the balcony with the First Lady and this year eight of the 23 guests were people who wrote letters or emails to President Obama. That included retired Army veteran Jason Gibson, from Westerville, Ohio. President Obama first met Staff Sgt. Gibson after he was injured serving in Afghanistan. Twenty one surgeries and many years of recovery later, Gibson wrote to the president, describing how he completed several marathons despite losing both his legs.
Another Ohioan who was also invited was William Elder Jr., a medical student at Wright State University. Elder was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis when he was just eight, but he's expected to live a long time thanks to a special medicine that helps a subset of patients diagnosed with the disease. Cystic fibrosis is a genetic disorder that results in the build-up of mucus in the lungs and digestive system. It affects more than 30,000 kids and young adults in the United States.