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Trump Preps Message of 'Relentless Optimism' as Senate Impeachment Trial Nears End 

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Closing arguments were delivered Monday in President Trump's Senate impeachment trial with a final vote on acquittal or conviction set for Wednesday.

But before that takes place, Trump will deliver his State of the Union address Tuesday night in the venue where the impeachment articles against him were written. Trump is slated to deliver his third State of the Union address just one day before the Senate is expected to acquit him. 

The theme of his speech will be "The Great American Comeback." Trump is expected to tout the strong economy, job growth, and trade deals.

One senior administration official says "in his address, the president will lay out a vision of relentless optimism."

Trump made it clear that despite what's going in the Senate, he will not postpone the speech.

"I am going to have it. It's going to be done.  We are going to talk about the achievements that we made," Trump said. "Nobody has made achievements like we've made, so many different things. I am so proud of what we've done for our vets with choice." 

It's not clear if the President plans to mention the impeachment trial or call out Democrats sitting in the audience.

This will be his first face-to-face meeting with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) since House Democrats voted late last year to impeach him. 

Last week, the Senate voted 51-49 to reject additional witness testimony in the trial, clearing the way for lawmakers and Trump's defense team to begin their closing arguments.

"The President and his aides wielded the powers of the presidency and the full weight of the US government to increase pressure on Ukraine's government and coerce him to announce two sham investigations that would smear his potential election opponent and raise his political standing," said Rep. Val Demings (D-FL)

"At the end of the day, the key conclusion, we believe the only conclusion based on the evidence, based on the articles of impeachment themselves, based on the Constitution is you must vote to acquit the president," argued Patrick Philbin, deputy counsel to the president. "At the end of the day, this is an effort to overturn the results of one election and try to interfere in the coming election which begins today in Iowa." 

At this point, it looks like the vote will be held at 4:00 pm Wednesday to acquit or convict President Trump. 

Meanwhile, CBN News will provide full coverage of the State of the Union address on the CBN News Channel beginning at 8:30 Tuesday night.

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About The Author

Ben
Kennedy

Ben Kennedy is an Emmy Award-winning White House correspondent for CBN News in Washington, D.C. He has more than a decade of reporting experience covering breaking news nationwide. He's traveled cross country covering the President and scored exclusive interviews with lawmakers and White House officials. Kennedy spent seven years reporting for WPLG, the ABC affiliate in Miami, Florida. While there he reported live from Kingston, Jamaica, as Hurricane Matthew hit the island. He was the first journalist to interview Diana Nyad moments after her historic swim from Cuba to Key West. He reported