1981 State of the Union Address

1981 State of the Union Address
DateJanuary 16, 1981 (1981-01-16)
LocationWashington, D.C.
TypeState of the Union Address
ParticipantsJimmy Carter
Previous1980 State of the Union Address
Next1981 Joint session speech

The 1981 State of the Union address was delivered by President Jimmy Carter, the 39th president of the United States, to the 97th United States Congress in written format on January 16, 1981.[1] In this address, Carter discussed economic issues as well as the Iranian hostage crisis.[1] Carter began his speech with:

The State of the Union is sound. Our economy is recovering from a recession. A national energy plan is in place and our dependence on foreign oil is decreasing. We have been at peace for four uninterrupted years. But, our Nation has serious problems. Inflation and unemployment are unacceptably high. The world oil market is increasingly tight. There are trouble spots throughout the world, and 53 American hostages are being held in Iran against international law and against every precept of human affairs.[1]

This state of the union address holds the record of being the longest state of the union address at 33,667 words.[2][3]

To date, this State of the Union address was the last one given by a president in January of the same year in which he left office. Thus, Jimmy Carter is the last president to have given a State of the Union address in the same year in which he left office.[4] To date, this is also the last State of the Union address that has been delivered only in written format.[4]

  1. ^ a b c "The State of the Union Annual Message to the Congress". The American Presidency Project. January 16, 1981. Retrieved March 9, 2024.
  2. ^ Lindsay, James M. (February 3, 2023). "Ten Facts About the State of the Union Address". Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved March 9, 2024.
  3. ^ Peters, Gerhard. "Length of State of the Union Messages and Addresses in Words". The American Presidency Project.
  4. ^ a b Peters, Gerhard; Woolley, John T. "Annual Messages to Congress on the State of the Union (Washington 1790 - the present)". The American Presidency Project.