Obama to Give 'State of the Union' Speech

President Barack Obama is making final preparations for his State of the Union address to Congress.

The address is the last State of the Union speech he will give as president. In a radio broadcast Saturday, Obama previewed part of the speech. He said that "America can do anything".

Tuesday night, the president will remember his accomplishments in office. But White House staff members say Obama will also talk of the country's future.

White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough said, "He (the president) doesn't want this to be your traditional policy speech that outlines a series of proposals. Rather, he wanted to take a step back and look at the future of this country."

Obama will surely talk about the growing number of jobs during his years as president. He is also expected to note actions aimed at improving the health of the environment and passage of the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare. And he will note the 2009 government bailout of American automakers General Motors and Chrysler. He considers that financial rescue effort his biggest success, according to USA Today.

The Republican Party has long dismissed Obama's economic record. Republican critics differ over what has been accomplished over the past seven years and what should be done in the future.

"The president is going to talk about the future and try to paint a rosy picture where one does not exist," said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican. He spoke on ABC Television's This Week program. "What we'd love to hear from the president is a real plan to defeat ISIL (the Islamic State)," he added.

South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley will present the Republican response to the president's speech. Haley is Indian-American and considered a possible Republican vice presidential nominee.

I'm Jim Dresbach.

Michael Bowman wrote this story for VOAnews. Jim Dresbach adapted it for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

What do you think President Obama will talk about during his final State of the Union address? We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section or visit our testbig.com.

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Words in This Story

preview – n. a description of something that will happen or be available in the future

accomplishment – n. the successful completion of something

bailout – n. the act of saving or rescuing something, such as a business, from money problems

rosy – adj. having or producing hope for success or happiness in the future