U.S. President Donald Trump will deliver his State of the Union address Tuesday night, and it comes with his approval ratings sinking as the crucial midterm elections approach.

"It's going to be a long speech because we have so much to talk about," Trump said Monday at the White House.

The annual presidential address, to a joint session of Congress, is broadcast on all the main U.S. television networks and you can also watch it on the CBC News website or on CBC News Network starting at 9 p.m. ET.

Although total viewership has been dwindling since its peak in the 1990s, the address remains an important event on the political calendar watched by millions of Americans. Trump's first-term speeches drew on average more than 44 million viewers, according to Nielsen. Here are some key things to look for tonight:

Tariffs and the Supreme Court

From left, U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, Justice Elena Kagan, Justice Brett Kavanaugh and Justice Amy Coney Barrett wait for Trump to address a joint session of Congress on March 4, 2025. (Win McNamee/Pool/via The Associated Press)

By tradition, the justices of the U.S. Supreme Court get front-row-centre seats in the House for the State of the Union address, putting them in direct line of sight of the president.

Given how angrily Trump reacted to the court's decision last week to strike down the bulk of his global tariffs, it will be fascinating to see the dynamic.

During his White House news conference on Friday, Trump called the justices who ruled against him "fools and lapdogs." Will Trump be just as eager to insult them to their faces? Bring the popcorn.

Trump could also use the speech to lay out more of his plan to impose other tariffs in an attempt to replace those now declared illegal, which he had levied on Canada, Mexico and other countries around the world under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

Economy and affordability

Security fencing has been erected around the U.S. Capitol grounds ahead of Trump's speech. (Manuel Balce Ceneta/The Associated Press)

If there was any doubt that Trump will boast about the economy, he wiped that away during Monday's event at the White House.

"We have the greatest economy we've ever had," he said. "I'm making a speech [Tuesday] night and you'll be hearing me say that."

Trump's senior staff have been trying for months to pivot the president toward emphasizing economic and cost-of-living messages in his public appearances. Their boss, however, tends to go off script, and has expressed frustration that Americans don't seem to feel the economy is as great as he says it is.

Jonathan Ladd, an associate professor in the McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University, says Trump's ability to shift public opinion through the speech is limited.

"It's very hard to change the popularity of your party and your popularity as a president by a State of the Union message," Ladd told CBC News.

On average, recent polling suggests 41 per cent of U.S. voters approve of Trump's overall performance as president, and just 35 per cent approve of the job he's doing on inflation, according to Silver Bulletin, a poll-tracking and analysis newsletter.

Stephen Moore, who was a senior economic adviser to Trump during his first term, says it's crucial for the president to address the rising cost of living during the speech.

"The three areas that people are really concerned about are the price of groceries, the price of health care and the price of housing, and he's got to talk about solutions to those three things," Moore told CNN on Monday.

Iran and its nuclear program

WATCH | Amid tensions with Iran, the U.S. builds up its forces:

Foreign policy watchers will be scrutinizing Trump's address for any sign of his intentions toward the regime in Iran.

Last week, Trump warned Tehran to make concessions on its nuclear program "or bad things will happen."

Speculation that he could order airstrikes any day now is at a fever pitch, with a large U.S. military presence in and around the region.

The U.S. has also ordered non-essential diplomats at its embassy in Beirut and their family members to leave Lebanon, a country that harbours the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group.

Still, Tehran's leaders may have some breathing room as Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff and the president's son-in-law Jared Kushner are scheduled to meet with Iranian negotiators on Thursday in Geneva.

Elections, past and future

FBI agents are seen at the Fulton County election hub and operation centre near Atlanta on Jan. 28, when it was raided amid contined, and disproven, claims by Trump that it was part of an effort to rig the 2020 election. (Mike Stewart/The Associated Press)

Throughout this second term, Trump has repeatedly brought up his disproven claim that he won the 2020 presidential election and that the vote was rigged.

He has done so no matter the occasion — the National Prayer Breakfast, the launch of his Board of Peace, when the Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers visited the White House — so it's a pretty safe bet he'll bring it up during the State of the Union address.

What could perhaps be even more important is what the president has to say about future elections. Concern is mounting among observers and Trump critics that his administration is laying the groundwork to interfere in this fall's midterms, which will determine which party controls Congress.

Trump recently said Republicans in Washington should "take over" managing elections in at least 15 states, and alleged there were "rigged, crooked elections" in Detroit, Philadelphia and Atlanta, the major cities of three important swing states.

Canada vs. U.S.A., in politics and hockey

Many Canadians will be on edge wondering if Trump will mention Canada in his speech, and if so what he might have in store.

In the past few weeks, Trump has threatened to block the opening of a new bridge between Windsor, Ont., and Detroit, to impose tariffs of 50 per cent on all Canadian-made aircraft, and to hit all Canadian goods with a tariff of 100 per cent if Canada "makes a deal with China."

He has yet to make good on any of those threats.

Meanwhile, as the July 1 deadline for renewing the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) draws nearer, Trump has floated walking away from the trade deal, even though the U.S. agriculture sector and a wide range of U.S. business groups are urging him to extend it.

Canadian and U.S. officials have yet to begin formal talks on the review of CUSMA.

Canada's Connor McDavid skates past Team USA after losing in overtime during the men's gold medal hockey game at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan on Sunday. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press)

The most benign mention of Canada — albeit painful for hockey fans — would be if Trump uses the speech to crow about Team USA's wins in both the men's and women's Olympic gold medal games and perhaps rub it in Canada's face just a little, as the White House did on social media.

Trump had a phone call with the men's team as they celebrated their win in the locker room, and talked about sending a military jet to bring them to Washington for the State of the Union address.

"It's the coolest night, it's the biggest speech," Trump said, then somewhat grudgingly admitted he'd have to invite the women's team too, otherwise he might get impeached.

The women's team declined the invitation, citing prior commitments.