State of the Union: Biden rebukes Putin, offers 'unity agenda'

"We are stronger today than we were a year ago," the president said.

ByMeredith Deliso and Ivan Pereira
Last Updated: April 6, 2022, 10:13 AM EDT

President Joe Biden delivered his first State of the Union address as Russian strikes were killing civilians, forces were massing near Ukraine's capital Kyiv and Russian President Vladimir Putin showed no sign of backing down.

Latest headlines:

Here is how the news is developing today. All times Eastern. Check back for updates.
Mar 01, 2022, 8:27 PM EST

Heightened security on Capitol grounds

The nation's capital has ramped up security ahead of Biden's first State of the Union address tonight.

Up to 700 National Guard troops have been made available to assist local law enforcement, and a controversial inner-perimeter fence once again surrounds the U.S. Capitol.

Security around the U.S. Capitol building has been increased in anticipation of President Joe Biden's first State of the Union address, March 1, 2022, in Washington.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

The U.S. Capitol Police have also been working in tandem with local, state and federal law enforcement agencies on a "security plan to prevent any disruption to the important work of Congress," Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger said in a statement earlier this week.

-ABC News' Noah Minnie

Mar 01, 2022, 7:56 PM EST

For more live coverage

For more live coverage of the State of the Union, head to FiveThirtyEight, which is providing updates on Biden's address as well as the Texas primary election.

"Given the current state of affairs, both foreign and domestic, tonight is a big night for the president," writes FiveThirtyEight politics reporter Alex Samuels.

Mar 01, 2022, 7:54 PM EST

US to announce ban on Russian carriers from its airspace

Biden is expected to announce tonight that the U.S. will ban Russian carriers from its airspace, a person familiar with his remarks told ABC News.

Canada and the European Union have also issued similar bans following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

-ABC News' Ben Gittleson

Mar 01, 2022, 7:23 PM EST

GOP shares response ahead of Biden's remarks

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds is expected to hit Biden on inflation, foreign policy and school reopenings in the GOP response to tonight's State of the Union, according to an excerpt of her speech released by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.

"Instead of moving America forward, it feels like President Biden and his party have sent us back in time to the late '70s and early '80s. When runaway inflation was hammering families, a violent crime wave was crashing on our cities, and the Soviet army was trying to redraw the world map," she said in the prepared remarks.

Keeping schools open "is only the start of the pro-parent, pro-family revolution that Republicans are leading in Iowa and states across this country," she said.

"Republicans believe that parents matter. It was true before the pandemic and has never been more important to say out loud: Parents Matter," she continued. "They have a right to know, and to have a say in, what their kids are being taught."

-ABC News' Lalee Ibssa