 PresidentGeorge W. Bush during the speech, with Vice PresidentDick Cheney and House SpeakerDennis Hastert behind him | |
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| Date | February 2, 2005 (2005-02-02) |
|---|---|
| Time | 9:00 p.m.EST |
| Duration | 53 minutes |
| Venue | House Chamber,United States Capitol |
| Location | Washington, D.C. |
| Coordinates | 38°53′19.8″N77°00′32.8″W / 38.888833°N 77.009111°W /38.888833; -77.009111 |
| Type | State of the Union Address |
| Participants | |
| Previous | 2004 State of the Union Address |
| Next | 2006 State of the Union Address |
The2005 State of the Union Address was given by the 43rdpresident of the United States,George W. Bush, on February 2, 2005, at 9:00 p.m.EST, in the chamber of theUnited States House of Representatives to the109th United States Congress. It was Bush's fourthState of the Union Address and hisfifth speech to ajoint session of the United States Congress. Presiding over this joint session was theHouse speaker,Dennis Hastert, accompanied byDick Cheney, thevice president, in his capacity as thepresident of the Senate.
President Bush began hisState of the Union address by saying that theUnited States Government has a "great privilege" of being "placed in office by the votes of the people we serve. And tonight that is a privilege we share with newly-elected leaders ofAfghanistan, thePalestinian Territories,Ukraine, and a free and sovereignIraq," a reference to the first trulydemocratic, and relatively fair and free, elections that took place in the respective nations.
He reminded Congress of George W. Bush's second inaugural address, "Two weeks ago, I stood on the steps of this Capitol and renewed the commitment of our nation to the guiding ideal ofliberty for all." He then outlined the next part of his speech, beginning withdomestic issues, and moving on toUnited States foreign policy, "This evening I will set forth policies to advance that ideal at home and around the world."
The president began his domestic analysis by drawing attention to the growingUnited States economy, "Our generation has been blessed," and first and second generation parents, "we watch our children moving into adulthood... let us do what Americans have always done, and build a better world for our children and our grandchildren."
He noted that despite therecent recession, the economy is the fastest growing of any majorindustrialized nation, homeownership is at an all-time high, and 2.3 million (this statistic was highly disputed in the coming days) new jobs had been created. He attributed the economic turn around to his tax cuts, specifically lowerincome taxes,free trade initiatives, prosecution ofcorporate criminals.
Thirty-eight million viewers watched the address, a lower figure than any of Bush's previous State of the Union addresses, and indeed lower than any State of the Union addresses in the preceding twelve years.[1]
| Preceded by | State of the Union addresses 2005 | Succeeded by |
