At 9 PM ET tonight, President Obama will make his annual report to the US public on the State of the Union. You can watch the State of the Union speech on YouTube. The State of the Union speech is often an opportunity for President’s to outline their agenda for the upcoming year. As the Financial Times says, “if ever Barack Obama needed to rise to the occasion it is now.”

The healthcare bill has stalled as a result of the surprise election of a Republican to the Senate seat long-held by Democrat Edward Kennedy. Other domestic bills – such as the long-wished for Comprehensive Immigration Bill – were being held back until the completion of the healthcare bill. It remains to be seen if the President and Democrat leadership will revive a smaller healthcare bill or just table the bill. This is one thing to look for in the State of the Union.

As second thing to look for are any references to CIR and how forcefully the President talks about immigration. The President’s Press Secretary hinted that CIR will be mentioned. It is beginning to look like the President will not drive CIR, but is willing to throw his weight behind it if Congress decides to take action.