Trump sets prime-time speech to the nation for Thursday at 9 p.m

Trump the president gave no subject for the address, delivered from a White House now advancing 225 executive orders signed during 2025, the most in a single year since Franklin D. Roosevelt.

First Published: July 13, 2026, 10:56 AM ET

WASHINGTON D.C. — Donald Trump will deliver a Speech to the Nation on Thursday at 9 p.m. Eastern.

Here is the full post on truthsocial: “President Trump will be making a Speech to the Nation on Thursday evening, at 9 P.M. Eastern. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

Trump, the 47th president of the United States, disclosed the plan in a Truth Social post published on July 13, 2026 at 2:45 PM ET. The message named neither the topic nor the venue. It carried the closing line Trump uses often on the platform, “Thank you for your attention to this matter.”

The address arrives during a second term that began upon his inauguration on January 20, 2025 (see whitehouse.gov). Trump previously served as the 45th president from 2017 to 2021, lost the 2020 election, then won the 2024 election against Kamala Harris. He is the second former president to return to the office after a defeat.

A prime-time national address commands broadcast and cable networks and reaches tens of millions of viewers at once, giving the president direct access to households without a filter. The stakes fall on whichever policy or event the speech targets, a subject Trump withheld. Republicans hold simple majorities in the House of Representatives and the Senate, giving the party a federal government trifecta that shapes how any announced agenda item would advance.

Trump has leaned on unilateral action this term. He signed 225 executive orders during 2025, the most of any president in a single year since Franklin D. Roosevelt, and many face court challenges. His first term produced tax cuts, a replacement for the North American Free Trade Agreement, and more than 250 confirmed federal judges, including three Supreme Court justices (see whitehouse.gov).

For the average reader, a scheduled prime-time speech can preempt regular programming across networks and often signals a decision on the economy, immigration, or foreign policy that touches daily life. The absence of a stated topic leaves viewers to learn the substance only when the president speaks.

Has this happened before? This has happened before. Presidents routinely address the nation in prime time to announce military action, economic measures, or major legislation, and Trump has used the format across both of his terms.

The next word on the substance will come from Trump himself when he delivers the address on Thursday at 9 p.m. Eastern. The White House has not released a topic, a running time, or a location for the speech.

A presidential appeal for the nation’s attention has shaped history before. President Franklin D. Roosevelt began his radio Fireside Chats on March 12, 1933, speaking to millions during the banking crisis of the Great Depression and delivering roughly 30 such broadcasts through 1944. The chats steadied public confidence and helped Roosevelt win an unmatched four terms, setting a standard for direct presidential communication that every successor has tried to match.