The absurdity of those State of the Union Speeches. Like many political traditions accepted as unchangeable or timeless by Americans, the State of the Union Speech is neither required nor wise. First of all, the constitution merely states that the president "give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union, and recommend to their Consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient." It doesn't say anything about this information being conveyed in a speech. Naturally, Washington gave these addresses as speeches because he liked that sort of thing, and Adams used speeches because he was obsessed with the pomp of government power. Thomas Jefferson, on the other hand, realized that no such speech was necessary. Instead, he opted for written statements. His first "annual address," as it was called back then, was delivered to the Congress via a clerk.
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