NORTH CAROLINA -- Ahead of February 5's State of the Union, we've put together a guide of everything you should be looking for while watching as a North Carolinian. 

NC legislators who are in congressional leadership positions:

- Rep. Mark Walker, (R) 6th District, House Republican Conference Vice-Chairman

- Rep. Mark Meadows, (R) 11th District, House Freedom Caucus Chairman, and close ally to President Donald Trump.

- Rep. GK Butterfield, (D) 1st District, House Chief Deputy Majority Whip

- Sen. Richard Burr, (R) North Carolina, Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman

Other prominent NC legislators: 

- Rep. David Price, (D) 4th District, member, House Appropriations Homeland Security Subcommittee, and member of the bipartisan Homeland Security conference committee currently working on a compromise on border security to give the federal government open.

 

What NC lawmakers are watching for in the State of the Union

Tuesday night, President Donald Trump will take center stage in the U.S. House Chamber to deliver the State of the Union address.

Originally set for Jan. 29, the speech was delayed by a week as part of the ongoing government shutdown fight.

This is Trump’s second time delivering a State of the Union speech, though it will be the first time where Democrats control one of the chambers of Congress.

Presidents often use State of the Union messages to tout accomplishments and get the public on their side as they lay out policy goals for the year ahead.

So what are North Carolina lawmakers looking for? We asked a few of them.

 

Accomplishments

North Carolina Republicans, in particular, want to see the president tout what they consider “wins” from the past year when they controlled both chambers of Congress and the White House.

After a bruising midterm where they lost more than 40 House seats, the State of the Union gives the president - and, by proxy, the Republican Party - a chance to remind viewers why they should be given back power.

“We’d like for him to touch on … specifically in the lower unemployment for all of our communities, the good economic numbers, the consumer confidence index,” said Rep. Mark Walker, R-N.C. “We want to talk about some of those things, the pro life legislation that we were able to pass.”

Rep. Richard Hudson, R-N.C., meanwhile said he wants to the president to talk about what's labeled “historic progress” on issues like “rebuilding our military, combattng [sic] the opioid epidemic, reforming the VA and improving health care for veterans, and igniting job growth and a strong economy.”

 

Shutdown politics

While the longest government shutdown in history may be in the rearview mirror, the fight continues as congressional negotiators try to come up with a border security plan the president may accept by the Feb. 15 funding deadline. If a deal is not reached, government agencies could shut down once again.

Republican lawmakers believe the president will - and should - take the opportunity to make his case for the wall to the American people.

“I expect President Trump to continue to make the case why border security is absolutely necessary,” Hudson said.

In a statement, Democratic Congressman GK Butterfield said he wants the president to put the “partisan, divisive rhetoric behind” and “share a plan to work with Congress to prevent another government shutdown.”

Rep. David Price, meanwhile, said he wants him to avoid “rehashing” the shutdown and immigration fight altogether.

 

Aspirations

During last year’s address, the president called for $1.5 trillion in infrastructure investment. While that plan did not materialize, lawmakers hope the president once again lays out some sort of infrastructure plan as part of his speech.

Democrats see infrastructure as one area where there could be bipartisan cooperation.

“A vision for our nation’s infrastructure that would improve the flow of people and goods, and create jobs would also be well-received.  This is a chance to set a unifying tone and put the people first,” Butterfield said.

“What I want to hear from the president ... is a positive plan going forward for how we’re going to invest in our country,” Price said.

Walker, a Republican, agreed this sort of infrastructure investment could prove helpful in North Carolina, noting that outside of Texas, the Tar Heel State has “the most paved roads of any other state in the country."

Beyond infrastructure, Walker also said he would like to hear the president lay out a long-term plan for immigration. Such immigration reform ambitions have stymied lawmakers in the past.

“We hope that he has a chance to share his vision, and our vision for the next two years,” Walker said.

 

How to watch

Spectrum News will carry the speech live, complete with reaction from North Carolina lawmakers. The speech begins at 9 p.m. EST on Tuesday, Feb. 5.

Stacey Abrams, the former candidate for Georgia governor, will deliver the Democratic response following the president’s address.