The first State of the Union address following the 2022 midterm elections — and President Joe Biden‘s second overall — will be delivered on Feb. 7 in the House of Representatives.
The State of the Union, an annual message delivered by the president to a joint session of the House and Senate, includes the president’s agenda, current conditions of the economy and legislative achievements. And guests of the president and members of Congress may receive special shout-outs.
Past guests have included Apple CEO Tim Cook, baseball legend Sammy Sosa and Bill Nye, “the Science Guy.”
This year, some notable guests are set to make an appearance, including the parents of Tyre Nichols, who died three days after being beaten by Memphis police, and Brandon Tsay, who disarmed the gunman in the Monterey Park mass shooting last month where 11 people were killed.
Additionally, Sen. Alex Padilla said he will host former Monterey Park Mayor Henry Lo, who served from December 2021 to January 2023.
Members of Congress often invite guests to illustrate a point and to put a face to the issues they care about.
Here’s a look at who will accompany members of Orange County’s congressional delegation.
Katie Porter
Porter’s guest for the State of the Union is Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher, the chief officer of the California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO. Fletcher is the first woman and person of color to serve in the position, according to the California Labor Federation. She also served in the California State Assembly from 2013 to 2022, where she championed legislation that requires paid sick leave and overtime pay for farmworkers.
“Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher has been a champion for workers across our state for more than a decade. I’m honored to bring her as my guest to the State of the Union and hope her presence will serve as an urgent reminder of the need to stand firm against corporate giveaways,” Porter, an Irvine Democrat who is an outspoken critic of Wall Street, large…
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