Article by Rob Crilly in "The Washington Examiner":
The tone will be presidential, but the text will pull no punches when President Trump delivers his State of the Union address next week with an attack on the “rising force of socialism” in the Democratic Party during what will be seen as a manifesto for his reelection campaign.
With the Senate impeachment trial edging closer to its conclusion, the joint session of Congress offers a platform for the president to move forward with what a senior administration official said would be a tone of “optimism.”
So, while the president will likely set aside his rambunctious, freewheeling campaign style in favor of the restrained delivery of his previous State of the Union appearances, the text will include pointed digs at his opponents. A “can-do” approach that has delivered a “blue-collar boom," for example, will be deliberately contrasted with the “unjustified pessimism” of some in Congress.
Lowering the cost of healthcare through greater transparency and an end to "surprise billing" from out-of-network providers will also be at the heart of the speech.
“He will contrast his vision with radical proposals being floated on the Left,” said the official during a briefing. “Clearly, socialism is a rising force in the Democratic Party with very specific designs on our healthcare system.”
Contenders for the Democratic presidential nomination favor a single national health insurance system. However, polls suggest swing voters are wary of options that would eliminate private insurance schemes, and officials believe Democrats risk alienating centrists in a general election.
The official said Trump would call on Congress to act.
“I think you can expect a … very specific request for the Congress to do certain things with healthcare,” he said.
Trump is also expected to use the occasion to champion “school choice,” renewing his call for tax breaks designed to fund more scholarships for students to attend private schools.
Overall, the official said the text, which will only be finalized hours before the speech is delivered, would build on the forward-looking approach of the speech he delivered at the World Economic Forum.
“The president will expand on themes he developed in his Davos speech earlier this month and put forward an agenda focused squarely on the needs of working families, addressing issues that affect Americans’ quality of life and laying out solutions with can-do optimism in the face of unjustified pessimism we are hearing from some in Congress,” said the official.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/trump-to-attack-rising-force-of-socialism-in-state-of-the-union-speech