1982 State of the Union Address 1982 State of the Union Address The 1982 State of the Union address was given by President Ronald Reagan to a joint session of the 97th United States Congress on Tuesday, January 26, 1982. The speech was the first State of the Union address of President Reagan's first term. The speech lasted 40 minutes and 14 seconds and contained 5154 words. The address was broadcast live on radio and television. The speech was the first to acknowledge a special guest, Lenny Skutnik. Taking the place of Supreme Court Justice Byron White was retired Justice Potter Stewart. The Democratic Party response
State of the Union be read by a clerk until 1913 when Woodrow Wilson re-established the practice despite some initial controversy. However, there have been exceptions to this rule. Presidents during the latter half of the 20th century have sent written State of the Union addresses. The last President to do this was Jimmy Carter in 1981, after his defeat by Ronald Reagan and days before his term ended. For many years, the speech was referred to as "the President's Annual Message to Congress". The actual term "State of the Union" first emerged in 1934 when Franklin D. Roosevelt used the phrase, becoming its