By Steve Holland and Jeff Mason
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump planned in his State of the Union address on Tuesday to challenge Democrats to approve funding for his long-sought border wall, while stopping short of declaring a national emergency over it.
At 9 p.m. (0200 GMT Wednesday) before a joint session of Congress, Trump was likely to stir contention with remarks on immigration policy, after his demand for $5.7 billion in wall funds triggered a historic 35-day partial government shutdown that more than half of Americans blamed him for, according to Reuters/Ipsos polling.
"We have a moral duty to create an immigration system that protects the lives and jobs of our citizens," Trump will say, according to excerpts of his State of the Union speech released by the White House.
"No issue better illustrates the divide between America’s working class and America’s political class than illegal immigration. Wealthy politicians and donors push for open borders while living their lives behind walls and gates and guards," he will say.
Millions of Americans were expected to watch the address on television, giving Trump his biggest opportunity to date to explain why he believes a barrier is needed on the U.S. southern border with Mexico. The speech was delayed for a week because of the shutdown, which ended on Jan. 25.
Trump arrived at the Capitol on Tuesday night for the speech. During his address in the chamber of the House of Representatives, sitting behind him over his shoulder will be his main congressional adversary, Democrat Nancy Pelosi, who became House speaker after her party won control of the chamber in November's elections.
Many Democratic women lawmakers appeared for the event dressed in white to mark the 100th anniversary of American women gaining the right to vote. About half an hour before the scheduled start of Trump's speech, many of them gathered together, cheering, to take a group photo on the House floor.
Pelosi has shown no sign of budging from her opposition to Trump's wall-funding demand. That has led Trump to contemplate declaring a national emergency, which he says would let him reallocate funding from elsewhere without congressional action.
A source close to Trump said the president was not expected to use his speech to announce plans for a national emergency, which would draw a swift court challenge from Democrats. Instead he will urge a congressional committee to work out a border security deal by Feb. 15.
In his speech excerpts, Trump was to call attention to his efforts to rewrite trade deals with China and other nations to make the terms more favorable to the United States.
"To build on our incredible economic success, one priority is paramount: reversing decades of calamitous trade policies," he will say.
He also will call out Iran for threats against Israel.
"We will not avert our eyes from a regime that chants Death to America and threatens genocide against the Jewish people," he will say.
SCHUMER SEES CHAOS
Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer on Tuesday criticized Trump over the economy, healthcare and other issues. "The president will say the state of the union is strong but the American people know the state of the Trump administration is chaos," he said.
In excerpts from the Democratic response, Stacey Abrams, who lost the Georgia governor's race in November, said the government shutdown was "engineered by the president of the United States, one that defied every tenet of fairness and abandoned not just our people but our values."
Trump's speech also will offer areas of potential bipartisan agreement, such as infrastructure improvements, lowering prescription drug costs and healthcare.
Senator Angus King, an independent, told MSNBC that potential for bipartisan action over opioids, HIV and infrastructure could be derailed "if he throws down the gauntlet and gives us another lecture on the wall."
Trump's message could also be undermined by his threats to go his own way on the long-promised wall if he cannot get Congress to approve the funding he wants. He has said the wall, which he promised during his 2016 campaign and said Mexico would pay for, is needed to deter illegal immigration and drugs.
Some of Trump's fellow conservatives have urged him not to declare an emergency. Such a move would "upend" the balance of powers between the White House and Congress, Republican Senator Susan Collins told reporters on Tuesday.
Trump also will address foreign policy, including support for an effort to coax Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro into leaving power and declaring the Islamic State militant group all but defeated. He also will give an update on trade talks with the Chinese.
Asked if he would announce where he will next meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders declined to give any details in a Fox News interview. But Politico reported the summit would occur Feb. 27 and 28 in Vietnam.
Some Democrats have invited guests to the speech to highlight various causes, some at odds with Trump’s policies, making a raucous atmosphere possible inside the House chamber.
