After turbulent year, Trump to tout strong economy in speech to Congress

US President Donald Trump addressing Congress in his first State of the Union speech.

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump, battling a probe into his campaign's alleged ties with Russia and struggling to sell Americans on his leadership abilities, will take credit for US economic gains in the past year in an address to Congress on Tuesday (Jan 30) night.

Facing a deadline on an immigration controversy and strong Democratic opposition, Trump will also call for a bipartisan compromise of the type that has eluded him during a first year in office marked by heated political battles.

Trump will visit Capitol Hill to deliver his first State of the Union speech at 9.10pm (0210 GMT on Wednesday).

In preparing for the event, Trump told US television network anchors that he would offer a message of unity, in what would be a rarity for the politically polarizing president.

"I would consider it a great achievement if we could make our country united," he told the anchors during a lunch, according to comments released by the White House.

Aides said the Republican president would use the televised speech to tout the benefits of a tax overhaul approved by the Republican-controlled Congress in December that was his first major legislative victory.

"The economy will be front and centre," White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told NBC News on Tuesday.

The atmosphere in the House of Representatives chamber where Trump will speak could be tense. Several Democratic lawmakers have said they will boycott the event. Some Democratic women who will attend plan to wear black in support of the #MeToo movement against sexual harassment.

Ahead of Trump's speech, Republicans and Democrats were deeply divided over immigration, which has been linked to congressional efforts to pass a spending bill. Lawmakers face a Feb. 8 deadline to reach a compromise on the issue and pass a new budget measure to avoid a second government shutdown after a brief closure earlier this month.

To attract Democratic votes for an immigration deal, Trump has said he is open to letting "Dreamers," a group of immigrants brought into the country illegally as children, stay in the United States.

In return, he has demanded funding for his long-proposed wall along the border with Mexico and measures to curb family sponsorship of immigrants, proposals that have failed to gain traction with Democrats in the past.

US Senator Dick Durbin, the number two Democrat in the Senate, said the two sides had made little progress so far in bridging differences on immigration.

"We didn't agree on anything," Durbin said after a meeting with Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill on Monday.

RUSSIA PROBE

Trump will also promote a US$1.7 trillion plan to rebuild America's aging roads and other infrastructure, but he is not expected to offer many details.

Trump is expected to address the various global issues that have preoccupied his administration, such as the challenge posed by North Korea's nuclear and weapons programs, and Iran's clout in the Middle East.

The speech comes as the president is buffeted by a series of headlines about U.S. Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into whether Trump or his aides colluded with Russia during the 2016 presidential election.

US intelligence agencies have concluded that Russia interfered in the campaign using hacking and propaganda to attempt to tilt the race in Trump's favour. Russia has denied meddling. Trump, who has called Mueller’s probe a “witch hunt,” has denied any collusion with Russia or that he has obstructed justice in his actions related to the federal investigation.

Americans, at the same time, are voicing concerns about Trump's fitness for office. Opinion polls show his job approval ratings are about 40 per cent, a number that is alarming to Republicans as they seek to maintain control of the US Congress in midterm elections in November.

Leaders of the two parties had sharply different expectations for the speech. Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan said he was "excited" to hear a State of the Union speech when things were so promising.

"It's really encouraging to be able to come and hear an upbeat tone at a State of the Union," Ryan told reporters. "Economic confidence is coming back to America."

Representative Steny Hoyer, the number two House Democrat, said Trump's theme of a "safe, strong and proud America" did not reflect reality.

"That may be the theme, but that's not what has happened over the last year," he said, adding that Trump had alienated U.S. allies, hollowed out the diplomatic corps and increased the national debt with tax legislation.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said Trump should thank his Democratic predecessor, Barack Obama, for the strong economic outlook. "Like many things in life, he inherited the healthy economy," Schumer said of Trump.