Trump's State of the Union 2018: President talks tough on North Korea and keeps Guantanamo Bay open as he lays out his American dream - as it happened

With Mr Trump being quiet on Twitter, the White House has sought to focus attention on his big speech. Officials said Mr Trump had spent months giving aides "tidbits" about lines he wanted to use in the speech and was assisted in its crafting by national security adviser HR McMaster and economy adviser Gary Cohn.

With the speech around two and a half hours away, the White House has released excerpts of what Mr Trump will say:

 Some are to be expected. Touting the tax cut, the  stuff on cutting regulations, and the claims about energy. Although I don't see how the administration has ended the war on American energy. Although there is no doubt regulations around energy production have seen some major changes, with Mr Trump having sought to take large chunks out of his predecessor Barack Obama's policies on clean energy.

He has been touting success against Isis all year too, although the groundwork was laid by Mr Obama in that regard too.

•       Together, we are building a SAFE, STRONG, and PROUD America. 

•       We want every American to know the dignity of a hard day’s work; we want every child to be safe in their home at night, and we want every citizen to be proud of this land that we love.

•       Just as I promised the American People from this podium 11 months ago, we enacted the biggest tax cuts and reform in American history.

•       Our massive tax cuts provide tremendous relief for the Middle Class and small businesses.

•       Since we passed tax cuts, roughly 3 million workers have already gotten tax cut bonuses – many of them thousands of dollars per worker.  

•       In our drive to make Washington accountable, we have eliminated more regulations in our first year than any administration in history.

•       We have ENDED the war on American Energy – and we have ENDED the War on CLEAN COAL.  We are now an exporter of energy to the world.

•       America has also finally turned the page on decades of unfair trade deals that sacrificed our prosperity and shipped away our companies, our jobs and our nation’s wealth.

•       America is a nation of builders. We built the Empire State Building in just one year – isn’t it a disgrace that it can now take ten years just to get a permit approved for a simple road?

•       As we rebuild America’s strength and confidence at home, we are also restoring our strength and standing abroad.

•       Last year I pledged that we would work with our allies to extinguish Isis from the face of the earth. One year later, I’m proud to report that the coalition to defeat Isis has liberated almost 100 per cent of the territory once held by these killers in Iraq and Syria.  But there is much more work to be done. We will continue our fight until Isis is defeated.

A couple of more intriguing notes. Mr Trump has been trying to play up the bipartisan efforts he has been making in the past few weeks as the government shutdown rolled into view.

There have been big clashes over immigration and Mr Trump is looking to be the unifier (despite his rhetoric often making the problem worse).

That is the point of set-piece addresses like this one and he is going to take full advantage by calling for a "New American Moment". 

Whether all these notes will play well with communities like the Haitians, and those under the travel ban remains to be seen, given Mr Trumps divisive comments over his first year. Many critics will have a particular problem with the passage in bold. 

  •       This is our New American Moment.  There has never been a better time to start living the American dream. 

•       Tonight, I want to talk about what kind of future we are going to have, and what kind of nation we are going to be. All of us, together, as one team, one people, and one American family.

•       Americans love their country. And they deserve a government that shows them the same love and loyalty in return.

•       For the last year we have sought to restore the bonds of trust between our citizens and their government.

•       Struggling communities, especially immigrant communities, will also be helped by immigration policies that focus on the best interests of American Workers and American Families. 

•       So tonight I am extending an open hand to work with members of both parties, Democrats and Republicans, to protect our citizens, of every background, color, and creed. 

Looks like we may get a reference to the strength of the US military and his toughness over situations like North Korea's nuclear programme

•       Past experience has taught us that complacency and concessions only invite aggression and provocation. I will not repeat the mistakes of the past Administrations that got us into this dangerous position.

And, of course, a dig at previous administrations. But that is the right of all White House incumbents. 

So, the lucky person with the job of being the 'designated survivor' - the member of Cabinet picked not to attend the speech in case the worst should happen - is Sonny Perdue, the agriculture secretary.

He would be the man tasked with restarting/leading the government

President Donald Trump is declaring a “new American moment” in his State of the Union address — but his former campaign foe, Hillary Clinton, declared one first. 

“This is our New American Moment,” Mr Trump will say, touting the state of the economy, according to excerpts released by the White House. “There has never been a better time to start living the American dream.” 

In a 2010 speech, then-Secretary of State Clinton told the Council on Foreign Relations that “a new American moment” was taking shape on the global stage, “a moment when our global leadership is essential, even if we must often lead in new ways.” 

It is not the first time Mr Trump has appropriated a slogan. “Let's Make America Great Again” was popularized in 1980 by Ronald Reagan's presidential campaign. 

Projection artist Robin Bell has used her work to critcise Mr Trump on a number of occasions 

Her latest work is now at the scene of the president's speech tonight:

Representative Joe Kennedy, the Massachusetts congressman who's giving the official Democratic response to Mr Trump's State of the Union address, just released excerpts of his speech.

"Bullies may land a punch. They might leave a mark. But they have never, not once, in the history of our United States, managed to match the strength and spirit of a people united in defense of their future,“ Mr Kennedy will say. 

  ↵More excerpts have been released from Mr Kennedy's speech:

Mr Kennedy will say it would be easy to dismiss the first year of President Donald Trump's presidency as “chaos” marked by partisanship and politics. 

But Mr Kennedy will say that Mr Trump has caused serious problems for the American people, including proposals that target Muslims, transgendered people and others. 

Mr Kennedy will say the Trump administration “isn't just targeting the laws that protect us — they are targeting the very idea that we are all worthy of protection.” 

The First Lady Melania Trump has arrived at the State of the Union address separately from her husband - a break with what had been a tradition for decades.