2019 Oval Office address
Footage of President Trump's speech | |
| Date | January 8, 2019 |
|---|---|
| Duration | ~10 minutes |
| Venue | Oval Office, White House |
| Location | Washington, D.C., United States |
| Coordinates | 38°53′52″N 77°02′11″W / 38.8977°N 77.0365°W |
| Theme | Government Shutdown and the Proposed United States-Mexico Border wall |
The 2019 Oval Office address, officially titled On the Government Shutdown and the Proposed United States-Mexico Border wall, was the first televised, prime-time Oval Office address during the presidency of Donald Trump, delivered on January 8, 2019 at 9:01PM EDT. It was released during the 17th day of a partial shutdown of the United States federal government. President Donald Trump delivered an address on illegal immigration from the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C. Major television networks broadcast the president's prime time speech as well as the Democratic response.
Trump used the speech to push for Congress to fund the construction of a larger barrier or wall at the border with Mexico, in order to fulfill a key promise of his campaign. Trump's refusal to sign a continuing resolution to keep the federal government open in the absence of funding for the wall had led to the shutdown. The address lasted just under ten minutes and was Trump's first to be televised from the Oval Office.