(The Center Square) – With President Joe Biden’s State of the Union speech Thursday night from Washington D.C., Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker is steering clear of mentioning the U.S. border issue, identified as the top one or two issues on voters minds.
Illinois has been more affected by the border crisis than most non-border states, as more than 35,000 foreign nationals have arrived, prompting Pritzker to ask for more funding in the budget for their care.
When fielding questions from the media Thursday in Decatur, Pritzker was asked what he expected from Biden’s address.
“We all expect that the president will review the economic progress for the country and what his plans are for the year ahead,” said Pritzker.
Political analysts say Biden faces a pivotal State of the Union address as he looks to silence skeptics about his age, convince Americans of a strong economy, and prepare for a likely rematch against former President Donald Trump in November.
Pritzker was also asked about a potential debate between Trump and Biden. Pritzker said that Trump does not always tell the truth when he debates.
“There are many things that come out of his mouth that are not truthful and I think it’s near impossible to call him on all of those lies during the course of a 60 minute or 90 minute debate,” Pritzker said.
Meanwhile, Trump said on the platform Truth Social that it is vital to America and the American people that he and Biden debate, and added “ANYTIME, ANYWHERE, ANYPLACE.”
Trump has announced that he will provide a play-by-play of the State of the Union address, but did not reveal what platform he would be using.
Greg Bishop contributed to this report.
